THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


I 


LIFE 


JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS 


COMPILED   BY   HIS   SON, 

REV.  WILLIAM  GEOEGE  HAWKINS,  A.M. 

• 


"The  noble  self  conqueror,  the  earnest,  generous  friend  of  the  inebriate,  the  con- 
sistent, devsted  advocate  of  the  temperance  reform  in  all  its  stages  of  development,  and 
the  kind,  sympathising  brother,  ready  to  aid  by  voice  and  act  every  form  of  suffering 
humanity." 


SIXTH      THOUSAND. 


BOSTON: 
PUBLISHED    BY.    BRIGGS    AND    RICHAEDS, 

456  WAsnujdTn.N  (-'TKI:I:T,  Con.  ESSEX. 


NEW    YORK  I 

SHELDON,     HLAKKMAN    &   C  0. 
1862. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1859,  by 
WILLIAM    GEORGE    HAWKINS, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the   District  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


LITHOTYPED  BT  COWLES  AND  COMPANY, 
17  WASHINGTON  ST.,  BOSTON. 

Printed  by  Geo.  C.  Rand  and  Ayery. 


MY  GRANDMOTHER, 

WHOSE  PRAYERS,   UNINTERMITTED   FOR   MORE   THAN  FORTY" 

YEARS,  HAVE,  UNDER   GOD,  SAVED   A   SON,  AND   GIVEN 

TO   HER  NATIVE   COUNTRY  A   PHILANTHROPIST, 

WHOSE   MULTIPLIED   DEEDS   OF   LOVE 

ARE   EVERYWHERE   TO   BE   SEEN,  AND  WHICH   ARE   HERE 
BUT   IMPERFECTLY   RECORDED, 

is  $0lunu 


IS   AFFECTIONATELY   DEDICATED 


550333 


PREFACE. 


THE  compiler  of  this  volume  has  endeavored  to 
obey  the  command  taught  him  in  his  youth,  "  Honor 
thy  father,"  etc.,  etc.  He  has,  therefore,  turned  aside 
for  a  brief  period  from  his  professional  duties,  to 
gather  up  some  memorials  of  him  whose  life  is  here 
but  imperfectly  delineated.  It  has  indeed  been  a  la- 
bor of  love ;  how  faithfully  and  judiciously  performed 
must  be  left  for  others  to  say.  The  writer  has  sought 
to  avoid  multiplying  his  own  words,  preferring  that 
the  subject  of  this  memoir  and  his  friends  should  tell 
their  own  story.  His  chief  solicitude  has  been  to  do 
justice  to  a  loved  and  honored  parent,  and  to  the 
Great  Reform,  with  which  he  was  so  closely  identi- 
fied. It  was  found  possible  to  incorporate  but  a  small 
part  of  his  correspondence  and  other  documents  within 
the  compass  of  four  hundred  pages,  but  enough,  it  is 
hoped,  fully  to  illustrate  his  character  and  services. 
It  is  believed  that  there  is  not  a  denomination  of 
Christians  in  the  land  unblessed  by  this  reform.  If 
it  has  thus  been  the  instrument  in  the  smallest  de- 
gree of  advancing  the  Redeemer's  kingdom,  it  should 

1*  (V) 


vi  PEEFACE. 

receive  the  cordial  support  of  every  earnest  and  sin- 
cere laborer  in  the  cause  of  truth  and  righteousness. 

A  perusal  of  this  volume  will  show  that  a  large  part 
of  Mr.  Hawkins'  life  was  devoted  to  the  interests  of 
Massachusetts ;  how  much  good  he  effected,  eternity 
only  can  unfold.  He  canvassed  this  State  more 
thoroughly  than  any  other.  She  was  the  first  to  rec- 
ognize in  him  a  reformer  whose  influence  was  likely 
to  be  great  in  the  land ;  he  therefore  loved  her,  and 
adopted  her  as  his  home.  He  has  frequently,  upon 
public  occasions,  expressed  the  wish  to  end  his  labors 
here,  and  here  to  be  buried.  Will  not  Massachusetts, 
therefore,  on  some  fitting  occasion,  indicate  an  ap- 
propriate spot  to  which  his  remains  may  be  removed, 
and  erect  over  them  some  humble  memorial  of  his 
deeds  ? 

The  great  dignity  and  importance  of  this  reform 
is  seen  by  a  glance  at  that  bright  galaxy  of  divines, 
statesmen,  physicians,  and  philanthropists,  who  have 
at  different  periods  given  to  the  subject  their  thoughts 
and  prayers  and  labors.  They  are  fixed  in  their  ele- 
vated positions,  and  the  radiance  of  their  beams  shall 
yet  lighten  all  the  land.  Our  heart  has  been  glad- 
dened as  we  have  from  time  to  time  noted  them 
down,  somewhat  in  their  chronological  order :  Rush; 
Porter,  Armstrong,  Humphrey,  Edwards,  Swan,  Bon- 
ney,  Dexter,  Chapin,  Beecher,  Nott,  Kittredge,  Hew- 
ett,  Stuart,  Tucker,  Fisk,  Sewell,  Warren,  Woods, 


PREFACE.  Vii 

Hunt,  Walworth,  Sargent,  Delavan,  Keener,  Pierpont, 
Grant,  Jewett,  Barclay,  Sigourney,  Mclllvaine,  Hitch- 
cock, Potter,  Tyng,  Marsh,  O'Neale,  Cocke,  Beaman, 
Chipman,  Gough,  Riley,  Kellogg,  Gary,  Dow,  and 
Arthur. 

The  compiler  expresses  his  thanks  to  the  many 
friends  of  his  father  who  so  promptly  responded,  from 
various  parts  of  the  country,  to  his  circular,  and  to  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Marsh,  and  other  friends,  for  valuable  files 
of  public  journals.  In  a  life  so  active  as  was  Mr. 
Hawkins',  many  incidents  will  be  found  scattered 
through  the  country  in  files  of  newspapers,  and  in 
the  memories  of  the  living ;  any  information  of  that 
character,  communicated  to  the  compiler,  at  No.  11 
Cornhill,  Boston,  will  be  gratefully  received. 

W.  G  H. 

BOSTON,  January  26th,  1859. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I. 

Birthplace  —  Parents  —  His  father's  death,  1811  —  School  days  — 
Rev.  A.  M'Caine  —  Apprenticeship  —  Drinking  usages. 

CHAPTER    II. 

War  of  1812,  1813,  1814  —  Approach  of  the  British  on  Baltimore 

—  Excitement  of  the  people  —  Leaves  his  employers  and  joins 
the  volunteer  forces  — The  battle  —  Death  of  General  Ross  — 
Journal  of  Rev.  J.  Baxley  —  Retreat  of  the  enemy. 

CHAPTER    III. 

1815.    His  thorough  conversion  —  Devotes  himself  to  good  works 

—  Organizes  a  Sabbath  school  for  boys  —  His  success  —  Teaches 
an  aged  African  to  read  the  Bible  —  Gratitude  —  Completes  his 
apprenticeship  —  Rejoices  in  his  liberty  —  Visits  Lisbon  — De- 
termines to  seek  his  fortune  in  the  Great  West. 

CHAPTER    IV. 

Valley  of  the  West  —  Journal  —  Views  a-foot  —  Middletown  — 
Hagerstown  —  Pittsburg  —  Tire  off—  Fort  Necessity  —  Wild 
scenery  —  Ohio  —  Steubenville  —  Cincinnati  —  Sixteen  towns 

—  Madison  —  Obtains  work  —  Letters  to  his  parents  —  Strives 
to  servo  his   Maker  —  Temptations  —  Yellow  fever  —  Cost  of 
liviug  —  Hum   umei  __  Emigrations  —  Whiskey  toddy—  The 


X  CONTENTS. 

evil  spreads —  Efforts  at  reform  in  1813-33  —  Waves  of  un<*odli- 
ness  —  His  parents  uneasy  —  Their  letters  —  His  reply  —  Better 
times  —  Again  idle  —  His  wretchedness  —  Determines  to  seek 
home  —  Starts,  1821. 

CHAPTER    V 

Western  Wilds  —  Ohio  —  Steamers  —  Forty-two  missionaries  — 
Osage  Indians  —  Snow-storm  —  Wheeling  —  Washington,  Pa. — 
Mount  Savage  —  Top  of  Polished  Mountain  —  Cherokee  Indians 
— Walks  thirty  miles  daily  —  Penniless  and  forlorn —  Approaches 
Baltimore  —  "  Mother  "  —  The  prodigal  reforms  —  Westminster 
—  Obtains  work  —  A  kind  German  —  Sunday  school  —  Fourth 
of  July  —  Joins  class  —  Again  in  Baltimore. 

CHAPTER    VI.- 

Home  —  Good  deportment  —  Marriage  —  A  happy  couple  —  De- 
cember 25,  1822  —  Faithful  to  his  business  —  First  a  moderate 
drinker  —  A  pleasant  companion  —  A  good  joke  —  Enlarges  his 
business  —  Wheeling,  Va.  —  Western  freight  wagon  —  A  babe 
on  the  mountain  —  A  kind  wagoner  —  A  great  conflagration  — 
Flames  spread  —  Ladies  assist  —  Saving  goods  —  Bilious  fever 

—  A  thriving  business  —  Reverses  —  A  wanderer  —  Trust  in 
Providence  —  John  Brown  —  A  faithful  dog  —  Fails  in  business 

—  Recrosses  the  Alleghanies  —  Moderate  drinking  —  His  gen- 
erous nature  —  Days  of  darkness  —  His  wife  declines  in  health 

—  A  faithful  Western  teamster  —  The  saddle  horse  —  The  inva- 
lid —  No  railroads  —  Beautiful  scenery  —  Western  Pennsylvania 

—  Incidents  —  Indians  —  Precipice  —  Deer  —  Dense  forests  — 
Waving  grain  —  Milk  and  fruits  —  Consumption  —  Medical  aid 

—  Approach  of  death  —  Jacob  Rogers  and  son. 


CONTENTS.  XI 

CHAPTER    VII. 

"A  strange  hectic"  — The  death-bed  of  a  Christian  —  "  Early, 
bright,  transient "—  The  bereft  partner  —  A  dark  night  —  Seeks 
the  consolations  of  religion— The  cholera  — No  work— His 
mother  away  from  danger  —  Gunpowder  Falls  —  Boarding 
school  —  The  grave  of  Rachel  —  Harrowing  thoughts  —  Second 
marriage  —  Hard  times  —  Low  wages  —  A  tender  conscience  — 
A  dangerous  appetite  —  Flees  from  temptations—  1836,  relapses 

—  No  hope  —  Struggles —A  beggar  at   prayer— Seeks  the 
.     prayer-meeting  —  A  powerful  conviction  —  Glad  tidings —  Great 

distress  —  No  work  —  Drowns  his  sorrows  —  Increases  his  misery 

—  A  mother's  intercession  —  Agony  of  spirit  —  A  bake-house  — 
Confidence  in  God  —  A  new  life  —  Comes  with  power. 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

The  Temperance  Reformation,  April,  1840  —  Baltimore  —  Wash- 
ingtonians  —  Christian  Keener  —  The  six  associates  —  The  agree- 
ment—  Pledge  —  John  Hawkins  joins,  June  14th  —  The  monster 
vice  —  Christmas  —  News  reaches  New  York  —  Hawkins  ad- 
dresses the  Legislature  at  Annapolis  —  His  eloquence  —  John 
Zug  —  Dr.  J.  Marsh  —  Green  street,  New  York  —  Extraordinary 
meetings  —  Great  enthusiasm  —  The  Park  —  Thrilling  scene  — 
"  Can  I  be  saved  ?  "  —  The  victory  —  Husband  rescued  —  Wife 
restored  —  The  new  impulse  —  North,  South,  East  and  West  — 
5th  April,  1841  —  Six  thousand  in  procession  in  Baltimore. 

CHAPTER    IX. 

"Onward"  —  News  reaches  Boston  —  Hawkins  sent  for — Boston 
Journal — Letter  to  J.  S.  Sleeper — Arrives  in  Boston,  April 
13,  1841  —  Meetings  at  the  Odeon  —  Resolution  by  W.  B. 


iii  CONTENTS. 

Spooner  —  House  of  Correction  —  Deacon  Grant  —  Four  hun- 
dred and  twenty  signatures  at  Sailors'  Bethel  —  Father  Taylor 
—  A  crowded  house  —  Work  fairly  begun  —  Great  meeting  in 
Faneuil  Hall  —  General  Lyman  presides  —  Reception  of  Mr. 
Hawkins  —  Speech  —  Tears,  mingled  with  rejoicing  —  Hall  in 
mourning  —  Death  of  Harrison  —  "  Second  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence "  —  Chelsea  —  Again  at  Faneuil  Hall  —  "  Freedom's 
life-cry  "  —  Speech  —  Evils  of  temperance  —  Resolutions  of 
thanks  —  A  scene  —  Dennis  W.  O'Brien  —  Addresses  the  prison- 
ers —  Weep  like  children  —  Odeon,  two  hundred  pledges  —  His 
style  —  A  great  work  accomplished  —  Marlboro'  Chapel  —  Dan- 
vers  —  Worcester  —  Norwich,  five  hundred  pledges  —  Paterson, 
N.  J.,  three  hundred  pledges  —  "  Log  cabin  "  —  Brooklyn  — 
Steamship  Fulton  —  Young  Men's  National  Temperance  Con- 
vention —  Reaches  Baltimore  May  14th —  Arrest  at  Philadelphia 

—  "A  good  joke." 

CHAPTER    X. 

Rapid  progress  —  Thousands  rescued  —  All  classes  and  interests 
benefited  —  The  May  Anniversary,  1841  —  Cause  for  devout 
gratitude  —  God  devised,  and  God  executed  —  Father  Mathew 
in  Ireland  —  Dr.  Baird  in  the  North  of  Europe  —  City  of  Balti- 
more —  New  York  and  Boston  —  Great  change  —  New  princi- 
ple of  love  for  the  drunkard  —  The  great  error  —  Dr.  Walter 
Channing's  letter  —  Early  movements — Samuel  Dexter — Na- 
than Dane  —  Determines  to  remove  to  the  North  —  Middletown 
and  Hartford  —  Temperance  Hotels  —  Marlboro'  Chapel  - 
Journal  — Rev.  J.  Pierpont— Concord,  Mass. —  Mr.  Hawkins 

—  Humility  —  The   spirit  of  Christ  —  Affecting  letter  —  Jolm 
Tappan's  letter. 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 

CHAPTER    XI. 

Proceedings  at  Lynn  —  Reception  —  Mass  Meeting  on  the  Com- 
mon —  Medford  —  Affecting  scene  —  Hardy  mechanic  —  Able 
lawyer  —  Middletown  —  Concord,  N.  H.  —  Fourth  of  July, 
1841  —  Two  hundred  thousand  ransomed  inebriates — Great 
gathering,  Broadway  Tabernacle  —  Boston  Common  —  A  bril- 
liant scene  —  Song  of  triumph  —  William  B.  Tappan  —  Down 
East  —  Bangor  —  Meeting  interrupted  —  Fair  play  —  Bangor 
Courier  —  Stillwater  — Portland  —  Convention  —  His  address  — 
Sympathy  for  the  drunkard  —  Thirty-six  lectures  in  twenty-five 
days  —  "A  glorious  triumph"  —  Eastham  Camp  Meeting  — 
Martha's  Vineyard  —  Nantucket —  New  Bedford  —  Fall  River 
—  Fairhaven  —  Four  hundred  children  —  A  cold  water  army. 

CHAPTER    XII. 

Letter  to  Mr.  Schaeffer  —  Lecturing  in  Massachusetts  —  Letter  to 
Dr.  Marsh  —  A  tour  through  Massachusetts,  New  Hampshire 
and  Vermont  —  Extracts  from  journal  —  Number  of  pledges 
taken  —  Extracts  from  journal,  continued  —  Letter  to  the  Boston 
Journal  —  Successful  tour  through  Maine  —  Letter  to  his  son  — 
Extracts  from  journal  —  Letter  to  Mrs.  Schaeffer  —  Temperance 
celebration  in  Faneuil  Hall  on  Christmas  day,  1841  —  The  man 
of  wealth  banishing  wine  from  his  table  —  Cradle  of  Liberty  filled 
three  times  in  one  day. 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

Auspicious  opening  of  1842  —  Newport,  R.  I.,  eight  hundred 
pledges  in  one  week  —  Interesting  sketch  from  the  Mercantile 
Journal  —  Edward  W.  Lawton's  letter  to  Dr.  Marsh  —  Rumsel- 
lers  voluntarily  giving  up  the  business,  and  throwing  their  liquors 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

into  the  streets  —  Power  of  kindness  —  Roman  Catholics  unitin" 

D 

in  the  movement  —  Iniquity  of  the  traffic  —  Moral  suasion  not 
abandoned,  while  he  arouses  a  healthy  public  sentiment  against 
the  "  license  system" —  He  early  desires  prohibition  —  His  mode 
of  dealing  with  the  rumseller  —  "  The  New  Impulse,"  or,  "  Haw- 
kins and  Reform  "  —  Total  reformations  to  January,  1842,  two 
hundred  thousand  —  Twenty  thousand  in  Boston  in  one  year  — 
Increase  of  temperance  publications  —  Great  doings  in  Troy,  N. 
Y.  —  Reaches  all  classes  —  Interesting  details  of  the  work  — 
Saratoga  Springs,  two  thousand  pledges  —  His  letter  to  Mrs. 
Schaeffer  —  Governor  William  H.  Seward  signs  —  Mayor  of 
Troy  —  His  efforts  among  the  sailors  —  Charlestown  Navy  Yard 

—  $2,500  in  lieu  of  spirit  rations  on  receiving-ship  Columbus  — 
The  movement  reaches  all  parts  of  the  republic  —  Legislative 
Temperance  Societies  —  National  Legislation  —  Doings  at  W.t.-h- 
ington  —  Reform  of  Hon.  T.  F.  Marshall  —  Andover— Way- 
land  —  Thrilling  incident  —  Instance  of  his  peculiar  power  of 
influencing  others  —  East  Cambridge  —  Brookline  —  Providence 

—  New  London  —  Cooperstown  —  Buffalo  —  Geneva  —  Rome 

22d  February,  1842—  Central  Market,  N.  Y.  —  The  traffic  fait 
on  the  -wane. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

Governor  George  W.  Briggs,  of  Massachusetts  —  Meeting  of  Con- 
gressmen—  The  nation's  representatives  aroused  —  Mr.  Haw- 
kins'  effort  at  the  Capitol  —  Refectories  in  its  basement  abolished 
—  Makes  many  friends  at  Washington  —  Whiskey  eleven  cents 
per  gallon  at  Cincinnati  —  Bar  rooms  "  to  let "  —  Consumption 
reduced  one-fourth —  Seventy-five  thousand  copies  of  his  Faneuil 
Hall  speech  circulated  —  Earnest  appeals  for  his  services  —  Goes 
to  Danbury,  Conn.  —  Great  reform  among  the  hatters — One 


CONTENTS. 

XV 

hundred  and  fifty-seven  reformed  in  a  few  months  —  Speehes  on 
steamboat  Norwich  —  An  amusing  'lefiuition  —  Mr.  Latham's 
experience  —  Noble  sentiments  of  the  Press  —  Remarks  of  the 
New  York  Times  and  Boston  Journal  —  List  of  Temperance 
journals  —  Lines  by  Rev.  John  Pierpont. 

CHAPTER    XV. 

Licensed  to  preach  the  Gospel  at  Maiden  —  No  intention  of  relax- 
ing his  efforts  to  reform  the  drunkard  and  to  destroy  the  traffic 
-Visits  eleven  towns  in  thirteen  days,  and  delivers  fourteen 
addresses  —  Reformed  drunkard  and  tavern-keeper  baptized  by 
immersion  —  Worcester  —  "  Teetotaller's  jollification  "  —  A  good 
time  — Enters  his  children  at  Wilbraham  Academy,  Mass. — 
State  Convention  at  Boston  —  Meeting  in  Hall  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  —  Resolutions  and  debate  —  Moral  suasion  not 
the  only  means  to  be  used  —  Its  inefficiency  with  the  unprinci- 
pled rumseller  —  He  continues  the  nefarious  business  in  defiance 
of  moral  appeals  —  Visits  New  Hampshire  —  Worn  down  by 
labor  —  Returns  home  to  rest  —  Removes  his  family  to  Worces- 
ter —  Finds  a  friend  in  J.  W.  Goodrich  —  "  Worcester  Water- 
fall "  —  Letters  to  his  eon  —  Completes  his  engagement  with  the 
Boston  Committee  —  Cider  drinking  —  Fourth  of  July,  1842  — 

Order  and  peace  of  Boston  —  Great  rejoicings   everywhere 

Large  procession  —  Speeches  —  Music  and  banners  —  Letter  to 
his  sister  —  Thankful  for  his  reformation  —  Sees  in  it  the  good- 
ness and  mercy  of  God  —  His  worldly  affairs  — -  A  letter  to  hia 
children  —  Goes  to  Plymouth  County,  Mass. 

CHAPTER    XVI. 

Great  enthusiasm  in  Bridgewater,  Weymouth  and  Quincy  —  East- 
ham  Camp  Meeting  —  Twelve  hundred  pledges  —  Seventy-two 


Xvi  CONTENTS. 

ministers  sign  —  Remarkable  reformation  in  Brunswick,  Maine 

—  Picnic  at  Norton  —  Three    thousand  present  —  Letter  from 
Keene,  N.  H.  —  Visits  Baltimore  —  Croton  jubilee  —  Lines  by 
George  P.  Morris  —  Faneuil  Hall  —  Letter  from  East  Hampton 

—  Worcester  County  —  Letter  to  Dr.  Marsh  —  Seventh  anni- 
versary of  the  American  Temperance  Union  —  Dr.  Beecher  and 
Mr.  Hawkins. 

CHAPTER    XVII. 

Visits  Western  New  York  —  Letter  from  Albany  —  Niagara  Falls 

—  His  thoughts  thereon  —  Visits  mansions  of  the   wealthy  — 
Intemperance    and    luxury  —  Buffalo  —  Utica  —  Syracuse  — 
Rochester  —  Canadians  on  Independence  Day  —  Auburn  —  Ba- 
tavia  —  Letters  to  the  New  England  Washingtonians  —  Ten-pin 
alleys  —  An  amusing  anecdote. 

CHAPTER    XVIII. 

Boston  —  New  England  Rum  versus  Foreign  Missions  —  South  Ber- 
wick, Me.  —  Letter  from  Eastport,  Me.  —  Good  success —  Visits 
New  Brunswick  and  Nova  Scotia  —  Well  received  —  St.  John 

—  His  visit  to  the  Southern  States  —  Charleston,  S.  C.  —  Exten- 
sive reformations  —  Visits   Columbia,  S.  C.  —  Letter  of  Hon. 
John  Belton  O'Neale  —  State  Temperance  Convention  —  Invited 
to  take  part  in  its  deliberations  —  Sonnet  —  City  prison  —  Re- 
lease   of  prisoners  —  Savannah,   Georgia  —  Sailors'    boarding 
houses  —  His  address  —  Lectures  in  a  Roman  Catholic  church  — 
Macon  —  Resolutions. 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    XIX. 

Reaches  Boston  —  Reformation    of  John    B.    Gough Deacon 

Moses  Grant  —  Henry  Plympton's  letter — '30th  May,  1844 

Large  assemblage  on  Boston   Common  —  Cold  water  army  — . 

—  The  procession  —  Address  of  Gov.  Briggs  —  Banners Reso- 
lutions —  "  The  cause  "  —  Dr.  Marsh  —  Great    Barrington 

Berkshire  County  —  Changes  in  Worcester  —  An  ardent  disciple 
of  Isaac  "Walton  —  His  love  for  the  sport  —  An  amusing  incident 

—  Home  again  —  Western  tour  —  Cincinnati  —  Madison,  Indi- 
ana —  Louisville  —  St.    Louis  —  New     Orleans  —  St.   Charles 
Hotel  —  Enthusiasm  —  Memphis,  Tenn.  —  Vicksburg  —  Visits 

Wheeling  —  Indianapolis,  Indiana  —  Letter  of  George  Kent 

Opinion  of  Rev.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  D.  D. 

CHAPTER    XX. 

Success  in  the  West  —  Hon.  Thomas  H.  Benton  —  Return  to  the 
North  —  Visits  Portland,  Me.  —  New  Jersey  —  Thrilling  incident 

—  Stephen  R.  Hunt  —  His  own  home  —  A  spare  bedroom  — 
Platisburg  and  Montreal. 

CHAPTER    XXI. 

His  venerable  mother  — Her  visit  to  Boston  — His  pleasure  - 
Visits  various  institutions  in  Salem,  Boston,  &c— Down  east 
again  —  Returns  to  Boston  —  Inspects  the  city  —  Aggrieved 
at  the  increase  of  intemperance  —  Appeals  to  the  public 
through  the  Boston  Journal  —  In  the  Police  Court  —  Hia 
sympathy  for  the  drunkard  —  Vermont  State  Convention  at 
Springfield  —  Massachusetts  Convention  —  His  address  —  Im- 
portant decision  of  the  Supreme  Court— Othello's  occupation 
gone  —  Visits  Rhode  Island  —  Lectures  in  twenty-six  towns  — 


XX  CONTENTS. 

Engages  to  canvass  Vermont  —  Remarkable  success  —  Fourteen 
hundred  pledges  —  Speaks  one  hundred  and  seven  times  in  suc- 
cessjon  —  Much  worn  down  —  Being  exhausted,  seeks  recreation 

—  Returns  and    completes    his  labors  —  Reaches    Boston  —  Is 
taken  ill  —  Reaches  his  son  at  Pequea,    Penn.  —  A  pleasing 
respite  from  labors  —  Charming  scenery  —  His  enjoyments  — 
Meets  relatives  —  Abundance  of  fruits  and  flowers  —  His  last 
letter  to  his  mother  —  Sudden  illness  —  Death  —  Letter  to  Dr. 
Tyng — His  remarks  —  Lovely  Christian  character  —  Earnest 
prayer  at  the  family  altar  —  Quiet  submission  to  pain  —  Easy 
passage  to  the  "  sanctuary  above  "  —  How  the  news  was  received 

—  Expressions  of  the  press  —  Massachusetts  State  Convention  — 
Resolutions  —  Address  of  Rev.  -Mr.  Beaman  of  Salem  —  Letter 
from  Wm.  B.  Spooner  —  Meeting  in  Tremont   Temple,   com- 
memorative of  his  services  —  Large  attendance  —  Eloquent  ad- 
dress of  Joseph  Story,  Esq.  —  Poem  by  Hodges  Read  —  Lines, 
In  Memoriam,  by  William  H.  Burleigh,  Esq.,  of  New  York. 


LIFE    OF 


JOHN    H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

"  Let  not  ambition  mock  their  useful  toil, 

Their  homely  joys,  and  destiny  obscure  ; 
Nor  grandeur  hear  with  a  disdainful  smile 
The  short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor." 

IT  was  in  the  month  of  August,  1858,  that  the  writer 
of  these  pages  was  passing  along  Fells  Street,  on  Fell's 
Point,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  in  company  with  John 
Henry  Willis  Hawkins.  The  father  and  son  were  re- 
turning from  a  day's  fishing  excursion,  planned,  it  is 
believed,  wholly  for  the  son's  recreation.  As  they  ap- 
proached a  bend  in  the  street,  Mr.  Hawkins  stopped, 
and  pointing  across  the  way,  said,  "  Do  you  see  those 
dilapidated  buildings  ?  Just  on  that  spot  once  stood 
the  dwelling  in  which  your  grandfather  lived  and  died, 
and  where  I  was  born."  Fell's  Point  is  one  of  those 
projections  into  the  harbor  of  Baltimore  where  the  wa- 
ter is  deepest,  and  ships  of  the  largest  size  may  ap- 
proach. Stretching  from  this  street  are  numerous  long 
wharves,  where  busy  mariners  pass  and  repass  in 
crowds.  "  No  wonder,  then,"  it  was  replied,  "  you 
i 


2  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAW" 

are  so  fond  of  the  water  and  the  finny  tnbe,  and  that 
you  are  so  expert  a  swimmer,  since  you  passed  your 
boyhood  so  near  the  harbor." 

A  brief  genealogy  of  the  Hawkins  family  has  been 
preserved,  from  which  we  make  a  few  extracts.  Wil- 
liam Hawkins,  the  uncle  of  John  H.  W.  Hawkins,  ar- 
rived in  Baltimore,  from  England,  on  the  14th  of  Oc- 
tober, 1773,  with  his  father,  John  Hawkins,  who  had  a 
family  of  ten  children.*  His  grandfather's  name  was 
James,  the  son  of  Charles  Hawkins,  of  Exeter,  Eng- 
land ;  the  latter  was  killed  in  1704,  at  the  head  of  a 
regiment  of  which  he  was  colonel,  at  the  taking  of 
Gibraltar.  The  military  life  seems  to  have  possessed 
considerable  attraction  for  several  of  the  descendants 
after  their  emigration  to  this  country. 

Of  the  ten  children  of  John  Hawkins,  the  grand- 
father of  John  H.  W.  Hawkins,  nine  were  sons.  John, 
his  father,  was  the  sixth,  and  was  born  in  1764.  He, 
with  several  of  his  brothers,  settled  in  the  city  of  Balti- 
more ;  the  others,  fonder  of  adventure,  emigrated  to  the 
Western  States,  and  there  engaged  in  business,  where, 
it  will  be  seen,  the  subject  of  this  memoir  found  them 
in  after  years.  In  1800,  his  father  was  pursuing  a 

*  William  Hawkins,    born  1754,  died  1818. 


James  Hawkins,           ' 

1756. 

Robert  Hawkins,           ' 

1758,     ' 

1769. 

Jane  Hawkins,              ' 

1760,     ' 

1802. 

Thomas  Hawkins,        ' 

1762,     ' 

1816. 

JOHK  HAWKINS,          ' 

1764,     ' 

1811. 

Archibald  Hawkins,     ' 

1766,     ' 

1851. 

Isaac  Hawkins,              ' 

1768,     ' 

1795. 

Robert  Hawkins,           ' 

1770,     ' 

1800. 

Samuel  Hawkins,         ' 

1772,     ' 

1773. 

Susannah  Brown  Hawkins,  the  mother  of  the  above,  was  bora  in 
1736,  and  died  1772,  aged  36. 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  3 

thriving  business  as  a  merchant  tailor,  on  Fleet  Street, 
Fell's  Point,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore. 

His  mother,  Elizabeth  Dorsey,  was  respectably  con- 
nected ;  the  name  of  Dorsey  being  known  in  the  early 
annals  of  Maryland  in  connection  with  many  noble 
virtues  and  praiseworthy  deeds.  Both  father  and 
mother  were  professors  of  religion,  and  were  well 
known  among  the  Methodist  preachers  of  that  early 
day  as  exemplary  Christians,  and  possessed  of  those 
expansive  charities  which  made  the  dwelling  of 
"  Brother  John  Hawkins,"  the  place  of  common  resort 
for  the  preachers.  There  religious  meetings  were  held, 
and  many  earnest  prayers  offered  that  these  pious  pa- 
rents might  bring  up  their  numerous  and  increasing  off- 
spring in  the  love  and  service  of  their  Maker. 

To  John  and  Elizabeth  Hawkins,  were  born  ten 
children;  viz.,  Ruth,  John  Henry  Willis,  William  (died 
from  home),  Nicholas  (drowned),  Frances,  Elizabeth, 
William,  Ellen,  Archibald,  and  Ann.  John  Henry 
Willis  was  born  Sept.  28,  1797.  His  father  died  June 
3,  1811,  when  this,  his  second  child,  was  in  his  four- 
teenth year,  and  the  education  of  his  children  was  im- 
mediately placed  under  the  direction  of  their  uncle, 
William  Hawkins;  all,  except  John,  received  an  ex- 
cellent education.  The  teacher  under  whom  they  had 
been  placed  several  years  before  their  father's  death, 
was  the  celebrated  Alexander  MoCaine ;  a  gentleman 
well  fitted,  intellectually,  for  his  business,  but  a  most 
rigid  disciplinarian.  The  other  children  Seem  to  have 
experienced  but  little  inconvenience,  however,  from  this 
trait  in  his  character,  or,  if  they  did,  but  little  complaint 
was  made ;  but  the  restless,  active  spirit  of  John  would 
at  times  rebel  against  the  rigid  restraint  under  which 


4  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

he  was  placed.  Mr.  Me  Cain e  was  a  man  of  powerful 
frame,  and  stentorian  lungs,  and  woe  to  the  youth  who 
felt  the  weight  of  his  massive  hand.  Being  considered 
the  rogue,  and  possibly  the  dunce  of  the  school,  John 
was  often  the  subject  of  chastisement;  sometimes, 
probably,  beyond  his  deserts.  But  a  resolute  will  and 
great  power  of  endurance  enabled  him  to  bear  up  un- 
der it.  At  times,  however,  he  would  become  so  terri- 
fied at  the  threats  of  his  teacher  as  to  be  rendered 
wholly  incapable  of  efficient  study.  In  a  letter  from 
his  sister  Frances,  speaking  of  his  school  days,  she  re- 
marks :  *  "  His  great  difficulty  with  his  teacher,  Mr. 
McCaine,  arose  from  his  daring,  brave,  and  restless 
spirit,  which  prevented  him  from  applying  himself  to 
his  studies,  thereby  bringing  censure  on  himself  from 
his  teacher.  He  was  a  great  favorite  at  school,  always 
ready  to  defend  and  protect  the  helpless." 

It  would  be  doing  injustice  to  the  memory  of  Rev. 
Mr.  McCaine  to  omit  making  mention  of  a  pleasing 
incident  that  occurred  in  after  years.  In  a  tour  which 
Mr.  Hawkins  made  through  the  Southern  States,  he 
was  invited  by  Mr.  McCaine,  then  pastor  of  a  church 
in  one  of  the  largest  of  the  Southern  cities^  to  lecture  to 
his  congregation.  The  assembly  was  a  large  one,  and 
the  venerable  preacher,  on  introducing  Mr.  Hawkins 
to  the  audience,  placed  his  hand  upon  his  head  and  re- 
ferred in  most  touching  terms  to  their  early  relation  as 
teacher  and  pupil,  —  to  the  wonderful  changes  that, 
time  had  wrought  in  their  histories,  and  the  gratifica- 
tion which  the  present  meeting  afforded  him.  The  in- 
cident added  much  interest  to  the  services,  and  many 
were  deeply  affected. 

*  MK.  Schaeffer's  letter,  dated  Oct  6,  1858. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS.  5 

Frequent  complaints  of  his  ungovernable  spirit  com- 
ing from  his  teacher  to  his  mother  and  uncle,  after  due 
consultation  it  was  determined  to  apprentice  John  to 
Mr.  Joseph  Coxe,  of  Baltimore,  to  learn  the  trade  of  a 
hatter.  Aware  of  the  restless  disposition  of  the  youth, 
due  care  was  taken  that  the  master  selected  for  him 
should  be  a  man  who  could  maintain  perfect  subordi- 
nation among  his  apprentices.  The  young  apprentice 
entered  heartily  into  the  business,  and  became  a  most 
expert  artisan.  His  fellow-workmen  assert  that  few 
men  could  accomplish  tasks  equal  to  him.  The  ap- 
prentices at  this  establishment  were,  in  the  estimation 
of  their  master,  well  cared  for ;  all  were  required  to  be 
in  bed  at  nine  o'clock,  and  the  hour  for  instruction  in 
the  schoolroom  was  rigidly  observed;  industry  was  the 
law  of  the  establishment,  and  no  drones  were  retained 
a  moment.  Mr.  Coxe  was  a  man  of  iron  will,  and 
not  insensible  to  the  duties  which  he  owed  to  his  ap- 
prentices. 

There  was,  however,  one  fatal  custom  prevailing  in 
that  day,  which  was  the  source  of  untold  woes  to  the 
youth  under  his  charge.  Stimulating  liquors  were 
daily  dispensed  to  his  apprentices  and  journeymen, 
under  1he  erroneous  belief  that  they  tended  to  increase 
their  vigor  and  activity.  The  use  of  liquors  in  the 
shop  only  led  to  the  continued  use  of  them  when  the 
labors  of  the  day  were  over.  Thus  many  were  led  im- 
perceptibly to  form  habits  of  inebriety,  which  wen; 
never  broken  up.  Of  this  period  of  his  life,  Mr.  Haw- 
kins thus  speaks  in  one  of  his  pnblie  add  re. 

"I  was  born  of  ivs]x.'(:f;ibl<:  parents,  and  WOfl  educate*!  by  a 
milliner,  and  then  bound  out  to  tin-  killing  btisi:  pcr- 


6  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

feet  a  grog-shop  as  ever  existed.  A  f -\v  days  before  I  left 
Baltimore,  I  found  th*1  old  books  of  my  master;  there  were 
the  names  of  sixty  men  upon  them,  and  we  could  recollect  but 
one  who  did  not  go  to  a  drunkard's  grave.  Another  halter 
says  it  was  just  so  on  his  books.  At  one  time  there  were  twelve 
of  us  as  apprentices;  eight  of  the  twelve  have  died  drunkards, 
one  is  in  the  almshouse  of  Baltimore,  one  is  keeping  a  tavern 
in  Baltimore,  and  here  am  I." 


CHAPTER    II. 

"  Then  a  soldier,    *    *    * 
Jealous  in  honor,  sudden  and  quick  in  quarrel, 
Seeking  the  bubble  reputation 
Even  in  the  cannon's  mouth." 

IT  will  be  remembered  that  the  subject  of  this  me- 
moir was  apprenticed  to  Mr.  Coxe  some  time  during 
the  year  1811,  when  he  was  in  his  fourteenth  year. 
Shortly  after,  in  1812-13-14,  the  country  became  con- 
vulsed from  one  end  to  the  other  by  the  battles,  both 
by  sea  and  land,  in  the  war  with  Great  Britain.  Thril- 
ling accounts  of  those  scenes  and  occurrences  were 
published,  and  read  with  avidity,  particularly  by  the 
youth  of  the  country.  The  surrender  of  Hull,  the  cap- 
ture of  the  Alert,  the  attack  on  Queenstown,  the  siege 
of  Fort  Meigs,  the  battle  on  Lake  Erie  and  the  success 
of  Perry,  the  capture  of  the  Peacock  by  the  Hornet,  the 
killing  of  Tecumseh,  the  exciting  events  of  the  Indian 
war  in  the  West,  and,  finally,  the  capture  and  burning 
of  Washington,  and  the  approach  of  <ho  British  navaJ 
forces  on  Baltimore  by  way  of  Chesapeake  Bay,  —  all 
these  events  furnished  to  the  apprentices  at  Mr.  Coxe's 
material  for  many  a  brave  speech,  and  inspired  them, 
doubtless,  with  the  resolution,  young  as  they  were,  to 
lay  down  their  lives  in  their  country's  behalf,  should 
opportunity  offer  and  ihe  cause  demand  it. 

It  was  under  this  slate  of  feverish  excitement  that 
the  announcement  of  the  landing  at  North  Point  oi 

(7) 


8  '  LIFE    OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

six  thrusand  British  soldiers,  under  the  command  of 
General  Ross,  fell  like  a  thunder-clap  upon  the  citizens 
of  Baltimore.  There  was  hurrying  to  and  fro  in  her 
streets,  and  parents  were  busily  employed  in  sending 
their  children  into  the  country,  away  from  the  impend- 
ing danger.  Mr.  Coxe  made  immediate  arrangements 
for  sending  his  apprentices  away  from  the  city  for  their 
better  security ;  but  John  Hawkins,  that  very  month, 
September,  but  seventeen  years  of  age,  was  not  thus 
to  be  restrained  in  his  liberty.  Leaving  the  others,  in 
company  with  a  cousin  he  proceeded  to  the  armory, 
secured  a  rifle,  and  joining  the  volunteer  forces,  three 
thousand  two  hundred  strong,  under  the  command 
of  General  Striker,  he  marched  with  them  to  North 
Point,  fourteen  miles  distant.  This  was  on  Sunday, 
the  llth  of  September,  1814.  What  took  place 
on  the  ensuing  day,  the  12th  of  September,  is  well 
known.  The  British  forces  were  not  only  kept  in 
check  until  the  forts  and  batteries  near  the  city  were 
placed  in  a  good  state  of  defence,  but  great  damage 
was  done  to  their  lines,  and  their  commander  was  yhot 
down,  advancing  at  the  head  of  his  column,  by  two 
American  youths.  These  youths,  Wells  and  McCo- 
mas,  were  members  of  a  company  of  sharpshooters, 
riflemen,  of  which  Dr.  S.  B.  Martin,  brother-in-law  of 
Mr.  Hawkins,  was  surgeon ;  being  an  actor  in  the 
scene,  his  account  is  both  valuable  and  reliable. 

This  company  had  been  sent  in  advance  of  the  vol- 
unteers, to  ascertain  the  position  of  the  enemy  and  to 
report  the  condition  of  their  forces.  It  was  soon  ascer- 
tained that  they  had  deployed  in  the  form  of  the  letter 
V,  and  before  they  were  aware  of  the  danger  they 
found  themselves  nearly  surrounded.  Most  of  them 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS.  9 

effected  a  safe  retreat;  Maj.  Heath's  horse  was  shot 
under  him. 

Early  in  the  day  the  word  had  passed  along  the  lines, 
"  Remember,  boys,  General  Ross  rides  a  white  horse  to- 
day !  "  The  two  young  men  had  declared,  that  morn- 
ing, their  intention  of  selling  their  lives  dearly.  In- 
stead of  retreating  with  their  comrades,  they  penetrated 
the  British  advanced  forces,  and  discovering  General 
Ross  mounted  on  his  white  charger,  they  aimed  the 
fatal  shots.  The  enemy  was  thrown  into  confusion, 
and  some  moments  were  consumed  in  preparing  a  litter 
for  the  removal  of  their  general,  weltering  in  his  blood. 

Dr.  Martin,  a  few  days  after  the  battle,  rode  down  to 
North  Point,  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  Gorsuch,  at  wjiose 
house  General  Ross  and  his  officers  had  breakfasted  on 
the  morning  of  the  twelfth,  and  learned  from  him  the 
following  facts.  On  their  departure  for  the  field  of 
battle  Mr.  Gorsuch  asked  the  General  if  he  should  pre- 
pare supper  for  them  upon  their  return.  "  No,"  said 
he ;  "I  shall  sup  in  Baltimore  to-night,  or  in  hell ! " 
It  is  believed  that  this  account  bears  upon  its  face  much 
stronger  evidence  of  authenticity  than  any  of  the  other 
numerous  versions  that  have  hitherto  been  published. 

General  Ross  was  killed  in  a  slight  skirmish  with 
the  rifle  company  a  few  moments  before  the  battle 
commenced.  The  volunteer  forces  were  soon  engaged. 
John  Hawkins  was  in  the  front  of  the  battle ;  several 
of  his  companions  in  arms  fell  at  his  side,  and  a  ball 
pierced  his  hat.  So  near  was  he  that  he  distinctly  saw 
the  action  which  deprived  not  only  the  British  general 
but  the  two  brave  young  Americans,  Wells  and  Mc- 
Comas,  of  their  lives; — they  were  immediately  shot. 
The  engagement  lasted  one  hour  and  twenty  minutes. 


10 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


The  killed  and  wounded  of  the  Americans  amounted 
to  one  hundred  and  three,  among  whom,  says  S.  G. 
Goodrich,  were  many  of  the  first  citizens  of  Balii- 
more. 


The  young  apprentice  and  his  youthful  comrade 
returned  to  their  homos  in  the  evening  of  that  ever- 
memorable  day.  His  mother  and  sisters  were,  as  would 
naturally  be  expected,  alarmed  and  anxious  as  to  his 
fate,  knowing  as  they  well  did  his  impetuous  temper- 
ament;  and  his  mother  had  been  often  to  the  door 
and  looked  up  the  street  for  her  son  and  nephew,  and 
when  at  last  she  saw  them  corning  she  hastened  to 
meet  them,  exclaiming,  "  Why,  my  son,  could  you  l>e 
so  venturesome?"  «  My  dear  mother,"  he  replied, 
"you  should  be  thankful  that  I  am  ulive."  On  ei 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  11 

ing  the  house  they  could  scarcely  be  recognized  by  the 
members  of  the  family,  their  faces  were  so  covered  with 
sweat  and  powder  and  dust.  They  were  themselves 
in  a  high  state  of  excitement,  not  knowing  what  was 
to  befall  their  homes  on  the  morrow.  They  went  to 
bed  in  a  room  called  the  "band-room,"  in  which  relig- 
ious meetings  had  been  held.  His  sister  Ellen  could 
with  difficulty  convince  herself  of  his  safety  ;  after  they 
had  retired  she  went  to  their  bedside  and  placed  her 
hand  upon  his  breast ;  the  heavy  throbbing  of  his  heart 
alone  assured  her  that  he  was  indeed  safe. 

This  demonstration  of  the  enemy  resulted  in  their 
entire  discomfiture,  and  on  the  14th  of  September, 
when  night  came  on,  they  silently  withdrew  and  re- 
embarked.  A  record  of  these  transactions  was  care- 
fully preserved  in  the  family,  by  Rev.  John  Baxley,* 
who  married  Mrs.  Hawkins  the  same  year,  she  having 
remained  a  widow  from  June  3,  1811.  Mr.  Baxley,  in 
his  private  journal,  says: — • 

Sunday,  llth  September,  1814.  —  The  British  fleet  are  in 
sight  of  this  city  (Baltimore),  about  fifteen  miles  distant,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  river  Patapsco,  at  North  Point,  in  number  about 
thirty-five  sail.  In  the  course  of  the  day  the  most  of  the  ships 
worked  inside  of  North  Point,  and  appeared  to  be  making 
preparations  to  land  their  troops.  This  has  been  a  day  of 
great  alarm,  and  to  some  of  terror  and  dismay.  In  the  morn- 
ing of  this  day  I  felt  my  heart  comfortably  engaged  in  devo- 

*  Rev.  John  Huxley  \v;is  a  local  preacher  of  the  Methodist  church,  a 
man  of  a  highly  cultivated  mind,  and  in  the  early  days  of  his  ministry 
was  extensively  known  as  an  able  and  cflirient  preacher.  Thousands 
have  been  instructed,  blessed,  and  saved,  under  his  thrilling  appeals ;  his 
methodically  arranged  and  fertile  in  appropriate 
illustrations.  He  died  in  1849. 


12  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

tion,  but  in  the  afternoon  found  my  mind  very  much  taken  up 
with  the  events  taking  place,  and  with  what  may  be  expected 
to  follow,  yet  feel  a  confidence  that  God  will  mercifully  spare 
the  city,  and  save  the  inhabitants  from  destruction. 

Monday ',  12th. — Through  the  course  of  this  day  experienced 
considerable  exercise  of  mind,  and  spent  several  hours  in 
viewing  the  enemy's  ships,  to  the  number  of  sixteen  sail,  come 
up  the  river,  and  take  their  positions  near  Fort  McHenry,  evi- 
dencing their  intentions  to  make  an  attack.  In  the  afternoon, 
while  viewing  the  approach  of  the  hostile  fleet,  distinctly  heard 
the  firing  of  artillery  and  musketry  on  land,  about  two  o'clock, 
and  in  the  evening  learned  that  there  had  been  an  engagement 
between  the  enemy  and  part  of  our  troops  on  Patapsco  Neck, 
which  lasted  more  than  an  hour,  when  our  troops  received 
orders  to  retreat,  which  it  is  said  they  did  in  good  order,  and 
reached  the  lines  or  entrenchments  a  little  after  sunset ;  many 
greatly  fatigued  and  exhausted ;  among  them  my  wife's  son  * 
and  nephew.  Some  lives  have  been  lost  on  both  sides,  without 
doubt.  I  feel  myself  exercised  about  my  family,  and  should 
have  been  better  satisfied  if  they  had  been  in  the  country ; 
yet  feel  a  degree  of  confidence  that  we  shall  be  preserved. 

Tuesday,  13th. — At  about  seven  o'clock  the  enemy  commenced 
bombarding  Fort  McHenry,  which  continued  with  some  little 
intermission  till  after  eleven  o'clock  at  night.  The  weather  has 
been  cold  and  wet,  and  every  thing  seemed  to  favor  the  enemy's 
operations  ;  wind,  tide,  darkness,  and  rain,  were  in  their  favor. 
Under  cover  of  the  darkness  they  succeeded  in  getting  past  the 
fort,  up  the  south  branch  of  the  Patapsco,  with  a  number  of 
barges,  said  to  contain  about  twelve  hundred  and  fifty  picked 
men,  with  a  view,  no  doubt,  to  attempt  storming  the  fort  on  the 
land  side.  Thinking  their  object  in  some  measure  obtained, 
they  are  said  to  have  cheered,  and  then  commenced  firing  rock- 
ets and  shells.  Our  batteries  up  the  river  (which  they  had 
not  observed),  and  Fort  McHenry,  immediately  opened  a  most 

*  John  H.  W.  Hawkins. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 


13 


tremendous  and  destructive  fire  on  them,  which  compelled  a 
retreat  and  it  is  supposed  they  must  have  lost  a  great  number 
of  men.* 

Such  a  terrible  roar  of  cannon  and  mortars  I  never  heard 
before,  and  never  wish  to  hear  again.  I  was  awakened  out  of 
sleep  by  its  commencement  about  one  o'clock  in  the  morning 
of  Wednesday  the  14th.  I  at  first  felt  much  alarm,  until 
fairly  awake,  and  enabled  to  ascertain  what  was  the  real  state 
of  things.  I  was  at  first  apprehensive  that  the  enemy  had 
suc.a-cded  in  effecting  a  landing,  and  were  entering  the  city. 
Under  this  impression  I  waked  up  all  my  family,  and  h:id 
them  ready  to  fly,  in  the  event  of  the  city  being  set  on  fire 
by  the  enemy ;  great  alarm  and  distress  were  excited  among 

-*  ll'rut  of  Fort  McIIenry  were  the  concealed  batteries,  which  checked 
the  approach  of  the  enemy,  and  which  effected  sucli  destruction  of  their 
hir^es,  spoken  of  in  the  diary  of  Baxley. 


14  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

the  women  and  children,  and  terror  and  consternation  seemed 
to  fill  every  mind  for  a  time.  But  it  was  soon  ascertained, 
that  having  failed  in  their  attempt  to  effect  a  landing,  they 
had  given  the  signal  for  retreat,  and  although  they  continued 
to  throw  shells  at  intervals  until  seven  o'clock  on  Wednesday 
morning,  the  army  had  retreated  to  North  Point,  and  had 
commenced  reembarking  ;  and  about  nine  o'clock  the  shipping 
that  bombarded  Fort  McHenry  were  all  under  way,  standing 
down  the  river  to  join  the  fleet  at  North  Point.  Surely  the 
hand  of  the  Lord  was  manifested  in  our  deliverance  from  our 
enemies ;  for  in  my  opinion  they  could  have  taken  the  city  had 
they  followed  up  the  success  they  obtained  at  North  Point ;  but 
it  would  appear  as  if  the  Lord  had  intimidated  them  with  fear. 
I  visited  Fort  McHenry  with  coffee  and  some  other  refresh- 
ments, about  eight  o'clock,  and  found  that  the  warm  coffee  was 
greatly  reviving  to  the  men,  who  had  been  standing  in  the  mud 
and  wet  for  a  number  of  hours."* 


*  Kev.  Mr.  Baxley  had  several  relations  among  the  volunteer  forces 
inside  the  fort. 


CHAPTER   III. 

Religion,  therefore,  is  a  necessary  and  indispensable  element  in  any 
great  human  character.  There  is  no  living  without  it.  Religion  is  the 
tie  that  connects  man  with  his  Creator,  and  holds  him  to  his  throne.  If 
that  tie  be  all  sundered,  all  broken  he  floats  away,  a  worthless  atom  in 
the  universe ;  its  proper  attraction  all  gone,  its  destiny  thwarted,  and  its 
•whole  future  nothing  but  darkness,  desolation,  and  death.  —  WEBSTER. 

IN  the  year  1815,  immediately  after  the  war,  an  event 
occurred  in  the  life  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir,  which 
was  to  affect  his  whole  future  destiny. 

In  an  extensive  religious  awakening  in  his  native 
city,  in  which  thousands  were  brought  from  darkness  to 
light,  the  young  apprentice  was  led  to  reflect  upon  his 
past  life,  and  became  thoroughly  converted  to  the  love 
and  service  of  his  Maker.  The  entireness  of  his  re- 
newal, and  the  earnestness  of  his  devotion  to  his  Maker, 
were  immediately  evinced,  by  actively  engaging  in  the 
work  of  instructing  and  reclaiming  others.  He  made 
no  delay  in  connecting  himself  with  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  and  in  endeavoring  to  walk  in  all 
the  commandments  and  ordinances  of  the  Lord  blame- 
less. His  pious  mother  has  often  remarked,  that  he 
was  spoken  of  by  others  as  the  most  exemplary  and 
devout  young  man  in  the  community.  He  assumed 
the  straight-breasted  coat  and  standing  collar,  the  pre- 
vailing custom  of  his  Methodist  brethren  in  that  day, 
and  he  was  subjected  on  this  account  to  no  little  an- 
noyance. He  often  referred,  in  after  years,  to  the  criti- 

(15) 


16  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

cisms  passed  upon  him  by  his  fellow  apprentices  who 
met  him  on  his  way  to  church. 

His  first  work  was  to  establish  a  Sabbath  school  for 
boys  on  Fell's  Point,  the  first  ever  opened  in  the  city 
of  Baltimore.  It  is  true,  some  maiden  ladies  had  com- 
menced Sunday-school  instruction  for  girls,  but  his  was 
the  first  eifort  to  bring  young  men  under  its  benign 
influences.  So  little  interest  was  felt  in  the  importance 
of  these  schools,  that  he  found  it  impossible  to  procure 
the  reading  of  his  notices,  for  the  organizing  of  the 
schools,  by  the  clergy  from  their  pulpits.  He  perse- 
vered, however,  and  a  large  number  were  gathered. 
Great  difficulty  was  experienced  in  obtaining  teachers, 
most  of  the  labor  of  instruction  falling  upon  himself. 
His  exertions  were  unremitted  until  the  close  of  his 
apprenticeship  and  his  departure  to  the  Western  coun- 
try. Much  good,  however,  followed  from  these  efforts, 
and  more  than  one  Methodist 'clergy  man  attributes  his 
first  religious  impressions  to  the  influence  of  this  school. 
The  last  address  delivered  on  earth  by  Mr.  Hawkins, 
was  before  a  Sabbath  school  in  Pequea,  Pa.,  in  which 
he  gave  an  account  of  the  establishment  of  Sunday 
schools,  and  the  incidents  connected  with  his  own  early 
efforts  in  Baltimore.  He  related  one  incident  which  is 
well  worth  recording.  On  his  late  visit  to  Baltimore, 
in  August,  1858,  an  individual  came  up  to  him  and 
cordially  grasping  him  by  the  hand,  asked  if  he  did  not 
remember  him ;  he  replied  that  he  was  sorry  to  say 
that  he  did  not.  The  individual  then  gave  him  his 
name,  adding,  "  I  was  one  of  the  youths  whom  you 
induced  to  join  the  first  Sabbath  school  in  Baltimore, 
and  my  best  and  earliest  impressions  were  obtained 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    IT.    W.    HAWKINS. 


17 


from  you.  I  have  in  my  possession  the  Psalter  and 
spelling-book  you  then  gave  me  ;  I  shall  prize  them 
very  highly,  and  when  I  am  dead  shall  bequeath  them 
to  my  oldest  son." 

During  this  period  of  his  efforts  in  the  Sunday-school 
cause,  he  became  interested  in  a  very  aged  African, 
who  had  been  thoroughly  converted  to  God,  but  could 
not  read  his  Bible,  and  expressed  a  longing  desire  to 
"Massa  John,"  as  he  called  him,  to  read  one  chapter, 
if  no  more,  in  that  precious  volume,  before  he  died. 
Mr.  Hawkins  undertook  the  task,  and  for  that  pur- 
pose met  the  aged  disciple  two  nights  in  every 
week,  for  a  whole  year.  He  began  in  ignorance  of  a 


18  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

single  letter  ;  but  his  instructor  was  not  to  be  discour- 
aged. Procuring  a  board,  he  covered  it  with  sand,  and 
commenced  by  teaching  him  to  form  letters,  then  words, 
and  then  sentences,  with  his  finger.  At  the  end  of  the 
year  he  h*ad  the  pleasure  of  hearing  his  pupil  read  the 
first  verse  of  the  third  chapter  of  the  first  epistle  of 
John  :  "  Behold,  what  manner  of  love  the  Father  hath 
bestowed  upon  us  that  we  should  be  called  the  sons  of 
God,"  etc.  When  the  old  man  got  through  the  verse, 
raising  his  eyes  and  hands  to  heaven  he  exclaimed, 
"  Bless  de  Lord !  bless  de  Lord  !  Now  is  thy  servant 
ready  to  depart."  "  But,"  said  his  teacher,  "  this  is  only 
the  first  verse  ;  I  intend  you  shah1  read  the  whole  chap- 
ter ;  "  and  he  continued  his  efforts  until  the  object  was 
accomplished,  to  the  infinite  joy  and  spiritual  benefit 
of  this  pious  servant  of  God. 

Whatever  difficulties  the  subject  of  this  narrative 
had  with  his  employer  previous  to  his  conversion,  he 
never  afterwards  had  any  cause  for  complaint ;  he  was 
a  pattern  of  industry,  and  was  acknowledged  to  be  the 
most  skillful  of  his  apprentices.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
one  he  was  considered  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
every  department  of  the  business  of  manufacturing 
hats.  He  often  remarked  that  during  the  whole  seven 
years  of  his  apprenticeship  he  lost  but  three  days ;  two 
when  at  the  funeral  of  a  brother  who  had  died  in  the 
country  while  on  a  visit,  and  the  other  at  the  battle  of 
North  Point.  On  the  day  of  his  coming  of  age  there 
was  due  to  him  from  his  master,  twenty-five  dollars  lor 
extra  work.  Twenty  dollars  of  this  sum  he  immedi- 
ately expended  in  books  for  his  Sabbath  school,  and 
five  dollars  he  reserved  for  the  purchase  of  firewood  to 
keep  the  school  in  operation  during  the  winter  season. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  19 

We  turn  now  to  an  entirely  new  chapter  in  the  lii'e 
of  Mr.  Hawkins.  Rejoicing  in  his  freedom,  emanci- 
pated as  he  believed  from  an  irksome  servitude,  he 
determined  for  a  brief  period  to  enjoy  life,  and  then, 
with  the  wide  world  before  him,  to  seek  his  fortune, 
independent  of  others'  aid.  He  was  free  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  year  1818.*  His  first  letters  of  which  we 
can  obtain  any  trace  commence  in  this  year.  His 
mother  had  numerous  relatives  residing  in  the  State 
of  Maryland,  engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits,  some 
of  them  in  Howard  county,  and  in  the  immediate  neigh- 
borhood of  Lisbon.  He  was  invited,  it  would  seem,  to 
spend  the  first  Christmas  of  his  freedom  with  them. 
He  thus  writes :  — 

LISBON,  HOWARD  Co.,  Dec.  31,  1818. 

DEAR  MOTHER,  —  I  take  this  opportunity  to  inform  you 
that  I  am  well,  and  trust  you  are  also.  I  have  had  the  greatest 
Christmas  this  year  that  I  have  ever  enjoyed  in  all  my  life  be- 
fore. I  have  been  visiting  every  day  sinee  my  arrival  here.  On 
Christmas  day  I  heard  the  Rev.  Henry  Welch  preach  a  Bap- 
tist sermon.  I  had  to  receive  my  portion,  for  he  tore  the 
Arminians  to  pieces  with  much  severity.  He  said  they  were 
all  as  blind  as  bats.  I  dined  this  day  at  Uncle  John  Welch's, 
where  the  sermon  was  preached.  On  Tuesday  I  heard  Brother 
Robert  Hood  preach  the  funeral  sermon  of  Debby  Dorsey. 
To-day  I  sat  down  to  a  great  dinner  given  at  Catharine 
Warfield's.  On  Saturday  I  heard  Brother  Machelfresh  preach 
a  very  good  discourse,  from  which  I  received  much  good.  On 

*  His  brother  William,  twelve  years  of  age  at  the  time,  writes  to  a 

cousin  in  Richmond,  Va.,  under  date  of   November  6,  conveying  the 

plea.-iiig  intelligence,  as  something  recent.     J!c  says,  ".John  and  Fletcher 

(h's  brother-in-law)  <irr  fi-o ,  and  are  now  at  home;  "  and  in  Jainary  fol- 

.'iii,  "  DiutiKT  John  has  gone  to  the  country." 


20  LIFE   OF  JOHN   II.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Wednesday  morning  I  went  over  to  Aunt  N W—  — 's, 

where  I  was  received  with  great  pleasure,  and  was  treated  as 
her  son,  and  by  her  children  as  a  brother. 

My  mind,  dear  mother,  is  very  uneasy  about  dear  sister  Ruthy. 
Let  me  know  how  you  all  are,  but  particularly  Ruthy,  for  you 
know  I  left  her  very  sick.  As  for  myself,  I  am  enjoying  iny 
visit  much,  and  am  as  happy  as  if  I  was  placed  upon  a  king's 
throne ;  my  relatives  everywhere  have  treated  me  with  the 
utmost  kindness  and  politeness.  I  have  seen  a  great  many 
pretty  girls  here,  and  have  actually  picked  out  one,  worth  about 
fifteen  or  sixteen  hundred  dollars ;  now  this  is  a  fact.  I  don't 
know  that  I  shall  ever  come  down  to  you  again ;  but  at  all  events, 
you  may  expect  me  down  about  the  last  of  January ;  you  need 
not  expect  to  touch  me  before.  To-morrow  morning  I  expect 
to  start  on  a  visit  to  Newmarket,  and  to  Frederick ;  we  design 
returning  in  a  week  or  two.  I  have  no  more  at  present  to 
write ;  but  give  my  love  to  papa,  particularly  to  friend  Dr. 
George  B.  Schaeffer,  Rev.  John  Daly,  and  Miss  Julia.*  Tell 
Fletcher  to  pay  up  my  meeting-fees  at  the  Hatter's  Society,  or 
I  shall  be  under  a  fine,  and  I  will  pay  him  on  my  return. 

Nothing  more,  only  beseeching  you  to  write  me  and  let  me 
know  how  Ruth  and  all  the  family  are ;  don't  fail. 
I  remain,  with  love  to  all, 

Your  affectionate  son  until  death, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

P.  S.  —  Here  is  room  for  you  all  to  criticize ;  the  poor  pen 
should  bear  the  blame,  for  it  won't  do  as  I  want  it,  it  is  so  stub- 
born. 

The  visit  over,  we  presume  he  returned  to  Baltimore 

*  Who  this  "  Miss  Julia  "  was  cannot  be  ascertained  ;  the  remark  may 
have  been  a  ruse  to  keep  them  in  the  dark  as  to  one  Miss  Rachel  Thomp- 
son, to  whom  he  was  in  reality  attentive. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  21 

about  the  last  of  January  or  first  of  February,  1819. 
He  found  business  of  all  kinds  very  much  depressed, 
and  after  seeking  in  vain  for  employment,  he  deter- 
mined to  seek  his  fortune  in  the  Great  West ;  his  great 
love  of  adventure  acting  also  as  a  powerful  stimu- 
lant. 


CHAPTER    IV 

"I  hail  thee,  Valley  of  the  West, 

For  what  thou  yet  shalt  be ! 
I  hail  thee  for  the  hopes  that  rest 

Upon  thy  destiny ! 
To  me,  in  all  thy  youthful  pride. 
Thou  art  a  land  of  cares  untried , 

Of  untold  hopes  and  fears." 

IN  April  (30th),  1819,  his  father-in-law,*  writing  to 
a  nephew  in  Richmond,  Va.,  thus  adverts  to  the  pres- 
sure of  the  times :  — 

Business  is  very  dull  here,  and  great  distress  is  felt  for  the 
want  of  money,  and  we  have  had  several  failures,  and  it  is 
likely  that  we  shall  have  more.  John  Hawkins  has  gone  to 
Pittsburg ;  he  wrote  under  date  of  16th  April  that  he  was  well, 
and  much  pleased  with  the  place,  and  had  obtained  employment 
at  two  dollars  per  day. 

In  a  letter  dated  June  4th,  same  year,  he  says :  - 

We  have  had  bad  times  here  in  business,  but  hope  to  see 
better  days.  Only  one  bank  out  of  the  ten  here  has  got  into 
difficulties ;  that  is  to  say,  the  City  Bank ;  but  report  makes 
things  much  worse  than  they  are  in  reality ;  yet  they  are  bad 
enough. 

It  was  under  these  circumstances  that  John  Hawk- 

*  Kev.  Mr.  Baxley  was  at  this  time  first  book-keeper  in  the  Marine 
Bank  of  Baltimore. 

(22) 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  23 

ins,  almost  penniless,  decided  to  leave  his  native  city, 
and  relations  to  whom  he  was  most  tenderly  attached, 
and  seek  his  fortune  in  those  Western  States  of  whose 
great  enterprise  and  rapid  growth  he  had  heard  so 
much.  The  letter  alluded  to  above,  of  April  16th,  nas 
not  been  preserved ;  but  we  have  a  brief  jfJurnal  which 
he  kept  on  his  journey  out,  detailing  his  adventures, 
etc.  It  is  entitled,  "  A  Journal  of  John  H.  W.  Hawk- 
ins, from  Baltimore  through  the  Western  States,  com- 
mencing April  6th,  1819,  and  ending  April  30th,  1821." 

Aprils,  8  o'clock.  —  I  left  Baltimore  ow/ooi,  and  arrived  in 
Lisbon,  twenty-six  miles,  at  four  o'clock,  P.M. 

Remaining  here  two  days  to  see  the  relatives  whom 
he  had  left  in  February,  recurring  with  delight  to  his 
former  visit,  and  inquiring  particularly,  without  doubt, 
about  the  young  lady  "  worth  about  fifteen  or  sixteen 
hundred  dollars,"  and  filling  their  minds  with  large 
ideas  of  his  intended  journey  and  sight-seeing,  he  de- 
parts on  Thursday,  the  8th. 

Left  Lisbon  in  the  stage,  and  arrived  in  Frederick ;  left  same 
day  and  went  to  Middletown,  where  I  remained  for  the  night. 

Friday,  9f/i.  —  Left  Middletown,  and  arrived  in  Hagerstown, 
at  which  place  I  endeavored  to  obtain  work,  but  found  it  im- 
possible. I  remained  until  Monday  morning.  I  found  the 
people  here  very  kind  and  accommodating ;  they  treated  me 
with  the  utmost  politeness. 

Monday  Morning,  Aprfi,  12th.  —  I  left  Hagerstown  at  one 
o'clock  in  the  stage  for  Cumberland ;  arrived  there  the  next 
day,  then  took  passage  in  the  stage  for  Uniontown.  This  eve- 
ning the  lire,  eame  off  the  wheel;  we  still  kept  on  for  nine 
miles;  the  spokes-  I>ylhat  time  were  not  more  than  eight  indies 
long.  Stopping  long  enough  to  get  a  wagon-wheel,  we  pro- 


24  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ceeded  on  our  journey ;  travelling  all  night,  found  ourselves  at 
a  little  before  sunrise  in  Uniontown.  I  here  took  passage  in 
the  stage  for  Brownsville,  which  is  twelve  miles  from  Union- 
town.  I  here  took  passage  in  a  boat  down  the  Monongahela, 
for  Pittsburg ;  but  the  boat  went  so  slow  that  I  left  her,  got  on 
the  shore,  aniwent  on  foot  for  Pittsburg,  and  arrived  there 
the  next  day,  Thursday.  Here  I  got  work  at  Mr.  Edward 
Patchell's;  I  finished  hats  for  him  awhile  and  then  went  to 
making  them.  I  boarded  in  this  place  with  Mr.  John  Win- 
kight,  at  three  dollars  and  a  half  per  week.  I  am  pleased  with 
this  place  but  not  with  the  people ;  they  are  not  sociable  in  the 
least.  The  Methodists  are  very  proud ;  much  more  so  than 
they  are  in  Baltimore.  This  is  quite  a  large  place  for  a  coun- 
try town ;  the  streets  are  very  well  paved,  and  the  houses  are 
of  brick,  and  mostly  two  and  three  stories.  "While  near  Cum- 
berland I  had  the  pleasure  of  viewing  the  spot  where  General 
Braddock  had  his  fort  erected  and  defended  the  town  of  Cum- 
berland. I  saw  also  the  remains  of  the  fort  erected  by  Gen- 
eral Washington. 

Fort  Necessity  was  erected  by  Washington,  as  it  is 
well  known,  in  May  or  June,  1754.  It  was  in  this 
place  that  he  defended  himself  with  so  much  bravery 
against  the  French  and  the  Indians,  nearly  fifteen  hun- 
dred in  number,  led  on  by  M.  de  Villiers.  After  an  ob- 
stinate resistance  of  ten  hours,  he  agreed  to  a  capitula- 
tion, by  the  terms  of  which  he  was  allowed  to  return 
unmolested  to  Virginia.  The  remains  of  Fort  Nee -cs- 
sity  are  still  to  be  seen  near  the  national  road  from 
Cumberland  to  Wheeling,  in  the  south-eastern  part  of 
Fayette  County,  Pennsylvania^  It  was  along  Ihis 
route  that  Mr.  Hawkins  proceeded  on  his  journey  10 
the  West.  The  picturesque  character  of  the  scenery 

*  Sec  Marcius  WiLson'b  Hi.-.: ory  of  the  United  State?,  \>.  I" 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  25 

in  this  part  of  Pennsylvania,  rising,  as  it  does  often- 
times, into  the  truly  grand  and  sublime,  arrested  the 
traveller's  attention,  fond,  as  he  evidently  was,  of  the 
beauties  of  nature.  "  This,  certainly,"  he  remarks  in 
his  journal,  "is  a  very  beautiful  country." 

He  remained  in  Pittsburgh  only  six  or  eight  weeks, 
working  the  while  at  his  trade ;  but  either  from  want 
of  employment,  or  from  love  of  adventure,  he  left  there 
some  days  before  the  14th  of  June.  He  makes  men- 
tion in  his  journal  of  having  been  from  the  14th  of  June 
to  the  7th  of  July,  in  going  down  the  Ohio  river  from 
Steubenville  to  Cincinnati.  He  also  remarks  on  the 
time  consumed  in  making  the  voyage  as  being  very 
long,  owing  to  the  low  state  of  the  water,  and  adds 
that,  generally,  with  high  water,  the  passage  was  accom- 
plished in  seven  or  eight  days. 

He  goes  into  a  minute  account  of  all  the  towns 
passed  on  both  banks  of  the  river,  delaying  long  enough 
in  each  to  ascertain  the  probable  population,  manufac- 
tures, and  public  buildings.  To  give  all  the  details  col- 
lected would  unduly  prolong  this  narrative.  Some  of 
the  statistics  given  are  strongly  indicative  of  the  habits 
of  the  people,  and  the  extent  to  which  intemperance 
and  rum-shops  prevailed.  He  says  of  Steubenville, 
Ohio,  "  It  is  handsomely  situated  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Ohio  as  you  descend,  and  occupies,  with  its  out 
lots,  a  very  fine  bottom  of  the  river,  rich,  extensive,  and 
well  farmed.  Its  manufactures  are  as  follows:  one 
Woolen  Factory,  one  Hot-air  Foundry,  one  Paper 
Mill  of  three  vats,  one  Brewery,  one  Steam  Flour  Mill, 
one  Steam  Cotton  Factory,  one  Nail  Factory,  two 
Earthern  Ware  Factories,  one  Tobacco  Factory.  It 
has  four  preachers,  six  lawyers,  five  doctors,  twenty- 


26  LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

seven  stores,  sixteen  taverns,  two  banks,  one  printing 
office,  and  many  other  professions  too  tedious  to  men- 
tion." 

He  indulges  in  the  same  minute  description  of 
Wellsburgh,  Wheeling,  Pultney,  Marietta,  Point  Pleas- 
ant, Gallipolis,  Guyandot,  Greensburgh,  Burrsburgh, 
Portsmouth,  Adamsville,  Manchester,  Ohio ;  Mays- 
ville,  Augusta,  Newport,  Kentucky;  and  Cincinnati. 
He  reached  Cincinnati  on  the  7th  of  June,  1819,  wrote 
his  mother  a  letter  on  the  9th  of  the  same  month,  and 
on  the  14th  took  his  departure  for  Madison,  in  the  State 
of  Indiana.  We  give  this  letter,  omitting  but  few  sen- 
tences. It  shows  that  up  to  this  period  he  had  main- 
tained his  integrity  and  sobriety  of  conduct,  although, 
as  he  says,  beset  with  many  and  "  sore  conflicts." 

CINCINNATI,  July  9,  1«19. 

DEAR  MOTHER, —  I  take  this  first  opportunity  to  inform 
you  that  I  am  well.  I  arrived  at  this  place  on  the  7th  instant, 
after  a  tedious  journey  from  Steubenville,  in  consequence  of 
the  water  being  very  low.  I  was  from  the  14th  of  June  to  the 
7th  of  July  coming  from  Steubenville.  Many,  in  time  of  high 
water,  come  in  seven  or  eight  days.  This  is  a  beautiful  place ; 
it  contains  from  three  to  four  thousand  houses,  chiefly  of  brick, 
and  about  fourteen  thousand  inhabitants.  I  expect  to  commence 
work  on  Monday  morning.  At  present  I  am  boarding  with 
Ezekiel  Hall.  I  have  seen  a  great  number  of  my  uc(|u;iint- 
ances  since  coming  .here.  [He  mentions  the  names  of  eight 
or  ten  of  them.]  I  am  happy  to  hear  that  sister  Frances 
and  George*  are  married.  I  hope  they  may  live  happily  to- 

*  The  George  referred  to  here,  was  the  Rev.  George  B.  SchaeffVr,  a 
clergyman  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  who  was  married  to  his 
sister  Frances  on  the  25th  of  May,  1819.  He  was  a  faithful  and  earnest 
minister  of  <-ae  P.  E.  Church,  but  died  early  in  life,  a  martyr  to  too  so- 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  27 

gether  here,  and  in  the  end  be  crowned  with  everlasting  life. 
I  understand,  also,  that  sister  Ruth  and -Captain  What-you- 
call-him*  are  to  be  married  very  soon.  For  my  own  part,  I 
have  little  notion  of  getting  married  yet  -awhile.  I  hear  very 
distressing  news  from  Baltimore,  about  the  times ;  however,  I 
hope  the  times  will  be  better  before  I  get  back,  which  will  be, 
perhaps,  in  a  year  from  this ;  it  may  be  sooner. 

I  thank  God,  that  I  still  feel  myself  a  subject  of  his  grace. 
I  have  had  sore  conflicts  since  I  left  home,  but  still,  blessed  be 
God,  he  is  my  friend  and  advocate,  and  I  know  he  will  not 
forsake  me  if  I  put  my  trust  in  him !  He  is  "  a  friend  that 
sticketh  closer  than  a  brother."  I  feel  no  disposition  to  leave 
him,  for  he  has  done  great  things  for  me,  whereof  I  have  cause 
to  be  exceeding  glad ;  and  should  we  never  meet  again  *in  thb 
world,  I  trust  we  may  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on 

high.     Thomas  M wishes  you  to  let  his  friends  know  that 

he  arid  family  have  arrived  here  safely,  and  has  as  much  work 
as  he  can  do.  My  love  to  all  the  family,  and  to  all  who  may 
inquire  for  me ;  nothing  more  at  present.  You  will  please 
write  immediately,  and  direct  your  letter  to  the  care  of  Ezekiel 
Hall,  Main  Street,  Cincinnati.  I  will  answer  immediately. 
I  remain  ever  your  affectionate  son, 

JOHN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

From  his  journal  it  appears  that  he  made  but  a  brief 
sojourn  in  Cincinnati ;  probably  the  employment  not 
meeting  his  expectations,  or  not  being  permanent.  He 
says : — 

I  left  Cincinnati  on  the  14th  of  July,  and  arrived  in  Madi- 

vere  mental  application.  Mr.  Hawkins  became  strongly  attached  to  Mr. 
Schaefl'er,  and  «>n  his  return  from  the  West  was  married  by  liiiu  to  Miss 
liaclicl  Thompson,  of  the  city  of  I'.altimore. 

'•  This  was,  doubtless,  an  erroneous  report.     His  >  istcr  Ruth  was  mar- 
ried shortly  aftenvanl  ,   to  Dr.  Samuel  1J.  Martin,  al  present  a  practising 
•iua  in  the  citv  of  Baltimore 


28  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

son,  Indiana,  on  the  17th  of  same  month,  in  which  place  I 
remained  until  the  23d  of  August,  and  then  went  over  to  Bed- 
ford, in  Kentucky.  In  this  place  I  went  to  work  for  Mr. 
Thompson,  for  whom  I  worked  until  the  8th  of  December, 
1819.  I  was  then  compelled  to  cease  work,  in  consequence  of 
his  having  no  napping  on  hand. 

Judging  from  his  letter  to  his  mother,  he  went  imme- 
diately to  Madison,  to  spend  his  idle  time  with  his 
relatives :  — 

BEDFORD,  Kv.,  Nov.  17,  1819. 

DEAR  MOTHER  AND  FATHER  :  —  Your  letter  of  the  6th 
of  September  came  safe  to  hand  last  week,  and  it  affords  me 
much  pleasure  to  hear  of  your  good  health.  [The  hard  times 
at  the  East  compelling  many  emigrations,  he  continues :  ]  I 
am  happy  to  announce  to  you  the  safe  arrival  of  Mr.  T— 

R ,  and  family.     I C and  B Sands  stopped 

in  Limestone,  nearly  two  hundred  miles  above  Madison.  I 
cannot  express  the  joy  and  comfort  I  received  in  embracing 
these  dear  friends ;  they  are  all  pleased  with  Madison  and 

the  country.     S H is  particularly  pleased  with  the 

trip.  I  have  been  working  for  a  Mr.  Thompson,  in  Bedford, 
eleven  miles  from  Madison,  ever  since  the  23d  of  August, 
and  expect  to  work  for  him  all  winter.  I  get  better  wages 
than  I  got  in  Baltimore  or  anywhere  else.  Board  is  low, — 
two  dollars  and  a  half  per  week.  I  shall  soon  be  in  want 
of  some  linen,  but  do  not  like  to  pay  what  they  ask  for  it 
in  this  country.  Linen  that  you  can  get  in  Baltimore  for 
fifty  cents,  they  ask  one  dollar  and  a  half  for  here,  and  this  is 
too  extravagant.  If  you  can  possibly  find  an  opportunity  of 
sending  me  enough  for  the  present,  I  will  compensate  you  for 
it  if  I  am  ever  privileged  to  see  yqu  again,  which  I  hope  I 
may  next  spring.  Thank  God  that  I  am  able  to  say  that  I  am 
making  some  advancement  in  the  divine  life.  I  bless  God  that 
I  do  enjoy  a  peace  of  mind  that  the  world  knows  nothing  of. 
When  I  reflect  upon  the  goodness  and  mercy  of  God  which 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  29 

has  been,  and  still  is,  manifested  towards  me,  it  fills  me  with 
astonishment,  and  compels  me  to  say,  Who  am  I,  that  God 
should  be  mindful  of  me,  or  that  he  should  visit  me.  Glory  to 
God  ;  I  am  resolved,  though  earth  and  hell  combine  against 
me  and  endeavor  to  stop  my  progress  heavenward,  in  him  will 
I  trust ;  for  he  has  hitherto  supported  me  in  all  my  afflictions, 
.and  in  all  my  troubles  he  has  made  a  way  for  my  escape.  I 
am  a  great  distance  from  you,  and  know  not  that  I  shall  ever 
be  permitted,  to  see  you  again  this  side  eternity.  If  this  should 
be  the  case,  my  prayer  is  thai  we  may  meet  in  heaven,  where 
we  shall  part  no  more.  Oh,  may  you  be  able  in  that  great 
day  of  accounts,  when  God  the  Great  Judge  shall  call  you  to 
his  bar,  to  say,  "  Here,  Lord,  are  we,  and  all  the  children  whom 
thou  gavest  us."  Shall  this  be  the  case  ?  oh,  my  soul,  shall 
this  be  the  case  ?  God  grant  it,  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ. 
O  my  dear  parents,  pray  much  for  your  dear  children  that  are 
yet  out  of  the  ark  of  safety.  Oh  that  God  may  hear  our 
prayers  for  those  who  have  come  to  the  years  of  accountabil- 
ity, and  may  he  lead  those  who  are  young  by  the  right  hand 
of  his  power  in  all  the  paths  of  virtue  until  he  shall  call  them 
to  himself. 

You  write  that  the  fever*  has  been  very  bad.  Archibald 
has  since  written  me  that  it  had  abated,  which  I  am  glad  to 
hear.  I  have  nothing  more  at  present  to  say.  Give  my  love 
to  all  the  dear  families  and  to  all  who  inquire  after  me,  partic- 
ularly my  dear  friend  J K . 

I  ever  remain, 

Your  affectionate  son, 

JOIJN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

N.  B.  —  Direct  your  letters  to  Madison,  Indiana. 

*  During  the  summer  of  1819  the  yellow  fever  made  its  appearance  in 
Baltimore,  and  raged  with  such  virulence  that  as  many  as  a  hundred  and 
morn  deaths  occurred  weekly  for  some  time.     All  who  could  leave  the 
city  fled  at  its  approach. 
3* 


30  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

MADISON,  INDIANA,  Dec.  21,  1819. 

DEAR  FATHER  AND  MOTHER, —  It  is  with  much  satisfac- 
tion that  I  write  you  a  few  lines.  I  am  glad  to  inform 
you  that  I  am  well  arid  in  perfect  health ;  you  may  know 
this  when  I  tell  you  that  I  weigh  one  hundred  and  sixty 
pounds. 

I  do  adore  the  Lord  for  my  health  and  strength,  but  still 
more  do  I  adore  him  for  the  visitations  of  his  Holy  Spirit.  I 
can  testify  that  God  is  mine  and  I  am  his,  by  a  feeling  sense 
of  his  love  shed  abroad  in  my  soul.  That  little  spark  of  his 
love  that  I  enjoy  in  my  soul,  I  would  not  exchange  for  the 
riches  of  the  Indies,  or  for  the  king's  throne  ;  no,  never,  never 
will  I  give  up  my  shield,  never  will  I  let  go  my  hold. 

"  I'll  lift  my  hands,  I'll  lift  my  voice 

While  I  have  strength  to  pray  or  praise, 
This  work  shall  make  my  heart  rejoice 
To  spend  the  remnant  of  my  days." 

Since  I  left  you,  many,  very  many  have  been  my  troubles 
and  afflictions,  but  out  of  them  all  the  Lord  hath  delivered  me. 
I  am  determined  to  go  forward,  until  I  shall  lay  down  the  cross 
and  take  up  the  crown  of  life  eternal.  God  grant  this  to  be 
our  happy  lots.  You  mentioned  in  your  last  letter  that  you 
had  a  great  desire  to  come  to  this  country  ;  my  advice  to  you 
is,  if  you  can  possibly  make  arrangements,  come,  for  there 
never  was  such  a  country.  Your  relatives  really  desire  that 
you  should  come.  If  you  make  up  your  mind  to  come,  come 
when  the  river  is  high,  —  say,  about  April.  Bring  tea  and 
coffee  with  you,  for  these  are  scarce  articles  here  ;  coffee  sells 
at  fifty  and  sixty-two  and  a  half  cents  per  pound,  tea  at  three 
dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  pound. 

I  know  not  when  I  shall  see  Baltimore  again  ;  perhaps  not 
before  next  fall ;  it  may  be  not  before  a  year  from  that  time. 
I,  like  the  rest  of  the  human  family,  expect  to  live  another  life, 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  31 

as  soon  as  circumstances  will  admit.*     Give  my  love  to  all  the 

family,  and  to  uncle  J R .     Tell  him  by  all  means  to 

come  into  this  great  country.     My  love  to   Father  Kingston  f 
and  all  who  may  inquire  for  me. 

I  remain  ever, 

Your  affectionate  son, 

JOHN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 
P.  S. —  Don't  forget  to  send  the  linen,  and  I  will  be  much 

indebted  to  you  ;  you  can  send  it  by  Mr.  R or  some  one 

else.  J.  H.  W.  H. 

The  distress  in  commercial  matters  which  had  begun 
in  the  East  now  reached  the  West,  crashing  the  young 
enterprise  of  the  people,  and  producing  great  suffering 
among  the  emigrants  who  had  fled  to  the  Western 
States  in  search  of  employment  and  a  more  comforta- 
ble state  of  affairs.  Another  source  of  much  misery 
was  the  drinking  usages  of  society,  not  then,  as  now, 
confined  to  particular  classes  in  the  community ;  but 
all,  of  every  rank,  of  every  profession,  with  but  few 
exceptions,  were  addicted  to  the  moderate,  if  not  ex- 
travagant, use  of  intoxicating  drinks.  Without  the 
glass  of  whisky  toddy  the  minister  could  not  enter  upon 
his  duties,  the  lawyer  was  unfit  to  plead,  the  judge 
unable  to  render  a  decision,  the  schoolmaster  to  teach, 
the  doctor  to  visit  his  patients,  the  laborer  to  perform 
his  task,  the  housewife  to  enter  upon  the  duties  of  the 
day.  The  commercial  disasters  of  the  times  added  to 
the  catalogue  by  driving  many  in  thoughtlessness  to 
drown  their  sorrows  in  the  intoxicating  cup. 

*  One  object  ho  no  doubt  had  in  \i<:\v,  was  the-  accumulation  of  means, 
in  Miitirijiaiion  of  marriage. 

t  This  seems  to  have  been  a  spiritual  friend,  to  whom  he  had  become 
attached  after  his  conversion. 


32  LIFE   OP    JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

But  little  effort  had  been  made  to  stay  the  ravages 
of  intemperance.     It  is  true  that  in  1813  a  society  had 
been  formed  in  Boston,  "the  object  of  which  was  the 
suppression  of  the  use  of  ardent  spirits  as  a  drink." 
It  was  even  at  this  early  day  ascertained  that  more 
money  was  expended  for  alcoholic  stimulants  than  for 
the  school  and  pulpit,  involving  not  only  a  waste  of 
material,  but  the  ruin  of  thousands,  the  corruption  of 
public  morality,  and  a  slow  but  sure  degradation  of  the 
State.     But  these  evils  had  by  no  means  reached  their 
climax.       The   country  was  rapidly    approaching    an 
alarming  state  of  demoralization,  of  physical  and  men- 
tal suffering  ;  and,  in  1833,  the  astounding  fact  was  as- 
certained, that  the  infatuated  appetite  of  the  people  for 
intoxicating  beverages,  was  hurrying  thirty  thousand 
human  beings  annually  into  all  the  horrors  of  drunken- 
ness.    In  the  West,  distilleries  were  being  erected  in 
every  eligible  locality,  and  the  floodgates  of  moral  and 
social  death  were  opened  in  every  direction. 

It  was  amid  these  increasing  evils,  with  the  waves 
of  ungodliness  raging  on  every  side,  that  the  subject  of 
this  memoir  sought,  in  the  Far  West,  away  from  home 
and  kindred,  by  the  industry  of  his  hands  to  make  his 
fortune,  and  to  maintain  his  character  as  a  professing 
Christian.  Such  was  considered,  among  all  classes,  the 
harmlessness  of  stimulating  beverages,  that,  it  is  more 
than  probable,  though  there  is  no  positive  evidence  of 
the  fact,  that  Mr.  Hawkins  was  _at  this  early  day  in  the 
habit  of  its  moderate  use,  and,  possibly,  at  times  in- 
dulged immoderately.  It  is  not  improbable  that  rumors 
of  his  becoming  unsteady  had  reached  his  parents,  and 

*  See  the  volume  lately  issued  in  Boston  entitled  "  When  will  the  Day 
Come  ?  "  from  which  the  above  statements  are  derived. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  33 

to  guard  him  against  evil  consequences,  a  letter  had 
been  written  to  him  in  which  great  concern  was  ex- 
pressed both  for  his  temporal  and  spiritual  well-being. 
His  father-in-law,  Rev.  John  Baxley,  was  a  man  of 
excellent  judgment,  and  of  large  experience  ;  and  a 
letter  from  him  to  his  son-in-law  would  be  likely  to 
make  an  impression  upon  his  mind ;  that  letter  has  not 
been  preserved,  but  one  written  about  the  same  time  to 
his  cousin,  exhibits  the  character  of  the  advice  he  would 
be  likely  to  give. 

(REV.   JOHN   BAXLEY   TO    HIS   NEPHEW.) 

BALTIMORE,  July  24,  1819. 

MY  DEAR  NEPHEW,  —  Yours  by  Mr.  R was  duly 

received.    In  an  interview  with  Mr.  R this  morning,  he  was 

much  concerned  to  hear  that  you  had  suffered  from  painful  ex- 
ercises of  mind.  You  should  strive  against  giving  way  to  de- 
pression of  spirits,  and  endeavor  to  be  cheerful.  Do  not  let 
your  thoughts  dwell  on  gloomy  subjects  ;  and,  if  possible,  try  to 
find  a  friend  to  whom  you  can  freely  open  your  mind,  and  let  him 
know  all  your  painful  exercises.  When  you  write  to  me  again, 
tell  me  your  doubts,  and  fears,  and  temptations,  and  every  thing 
that  gives  you  distress,  and  I  will  do  my  best  to  advise  and  com- 
fort you.  You  should  get  acquainted  with  the  preachers,  and 
the  old,  experienced  members  of  society ;  their  conversation  and 
prayers,  and  their  experience,  will  be  of  great  use  to  you  ;  but, 
above  all,  go  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  prayer ;  he  was 
tempted  in  every  point,  even  as  we  are,  and  he  knoweth  how 
to  succor,  and  he  will  succor  "  them  that  are  tempted."  Read 
the  Scriptures,  and  other  good  books,  and  meditate  upon  what 
you  read,  and  also  on  what  you  hear  from  the  pulpit.  I  send 
you  with  this  letter  a  pocket  Bible,  a  "  Discipline,"  "  The  Chris- 
tian Pattern,"  and  two  volumes  of  Wesley's  Sermons ;  hike 


34  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

special  care  of  the  Sermons.     Be  sure  to  write  us  by  every 
opportunity,  and  open  your  mind  to  me  freely. 

I  remain,  dear  L , 

Your  affectionate  uncle, 

JOHN  BAXLET. 

It  was  in  reply  to  a  letter  giving  him  judicious  ad- 
vice similar  to  the  above,  that  his  son  John  replied :  — 

MADISON,  Feb.  26,  1820. 

DEAR  FATHER,  — Your  letter  of  21st  January  last,  came 
safe  to  hand.  Your  letter  afforded  much  satisfaction,  as  you 
feel  interested  for  my  temporal  and  spiritual  welfare.  My 
dear  father,  I  assure  you  I  feel  much  interested  for  myself.  It 
is  certain  I  am  exposed  to  dangers  on  the  right  and  left ;  but 
that  God  who  delivered  Daniel  and  his  three  servants  from  the 
fiery  furnace,  has  delivered-  me ;  he  has  fought  my  battles,  and, 
so  far,  brought  me  off  conqueror.  Is  not  this  reason  enough 
for  me  to  trust  in  him  ?  I  think  it  is.  Nothing,  however, 
shall  separate  me  from  him ;  no,  not  even  the  sufferings  of  the 
martyr ;  for  the  Lord  is  my  strength  and  my  salvation ;  if  I 
perish,  I  am  resolved  to  perish  at  the  feet  of  my  Saviour,  plead- 
ing for  mercy. 

I  feel  indebted  to  you  for  your  fatherly  advice ;  certainly, 
you  could  not,  do  me  a  greater  favor,  at  present,  than  to  forward 
me  such  wholesome  food.  Keceive  my  sincere  thanks,  for  it  is 
the  only  reward  I  can  offer  you  at  present.  You  know  the 
way ;  go  on,  and  God  will,  in  the  end,  take  you  to  himself. 

I  must  now  give  you  some  detail  of  the  times  in  the  West. 
There  is  general  suffering  among  the  people.  I  never  wit- 
nessed such  distressed  families  as  I  have  seen  in  the  past  few 
months.  Only  reflect ;  it  has  now  been  eleven  months  since  I 
left  you,  and  I  have  done  but  five  months'  work  ;  this,  certainly, 
is  discouraging.  I  must  leave  the  country.  If  I  could  raise 
the  money  I  would  corae  on  to  Baltimore  immediately.  How- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  35 

ever,  you  may  expect  me  in  the  spring  or  fall ;  at  present  I 
have  no  work  to  do,  and  have  had  none  for  two  months  past. 
I hardly  know  what  to  do,  but  this  thing  I  will  do,  endeavor  to 
keep  in  the  favor  of  God.  Pray  that  God  may  keep  me,  and 
protect  me.  Give  my  love  to  affectionate  mother,  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  all  my  dear  connections. 

1  remain  your  affectionate  son, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

This  letter  was  written  in  February ;  it  appears  from 
his  journal  that  he  recommenced  work  for  Mr.  Thomp- 
son, in  Bedford,  Kentucky,  on  the  llth  of  March.  Occu- 
pation seems  to  have  entirely  relieved  his  mind,  and  he 
consequently  writes  more  cheerfully. 

MADISON,  July  11,  1820. 

DEAR  FATHER  AND  MOTHER,  —  Your  affectionate  letter 
of  the  21st  of  June,  came  safely  to  hand.  I  was  extremely 
glad  to  hear  from  you.  It  affords  me  great  satisfaction  to  hear 
from  you  at  any  time.  I  am,  you  know,  at  a  great  distance 
from  you,  and  stand  almost  alone  in  the  world.  But  blessed 
be  God,  he  supports  and  protects  me  in  every  trying  circum- 
stance. I  have  just  recovered  from  a  very  severe  attack  of  the 
bilious  fever,  which  reduced  me  very  much.  I  have  great 
cause  to  thank  the  Lord  for  his  goodness  in  supporting  me  un- 
der my  afflictions,  and  bringing  me  again  to  health ;  he  has 
done  much  for  me,  whereof  I  have  cause  to  be  exceeding 
glad. 

I  have  as  much  work  as  I  can  do  all  the  summer.  The 
limes  are  much  better  here  than  they  are  at  the  Bast.  I  shall 
continue  here  as  long  as  I  can  get  any  work  to  do.  I  hope  you 
will  come  out  yourself  if  you  possibly  can. 

It  gives  me  much  pleasure  to  hear  that  W  -      -  has  a  situa- 


36  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

tion  in  so  respectable  a  house ;  I  hope  he  may  do  well.     Let 

him  remember  his   Creator  in   the  days  of  his  youth.     That 

God  may  bless  you,  and  all  the  family,  is  the  sincere  prayer  of 

Your  dear  son, 

JOHN   H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Here  his  letters  cease,  and  but  little  is  said  in  his 
journal,  except  that  he  was  again  thrown  out  of  em- 
ployment in  the  month  of  November,  1820,  and  re- 
mained in  this  unpleasant  position  until  nearly  all  his 
money  was  expended ;  and  what  was  worse,  with  bad 
habits  contracted  and  evil  associations  formed.  He 
had  squandered  all  he  had  earned,  and  was  reiuced, 
without  doubt,  to  much  misery  and  wretchedness.  His 
journal  received  less  attention;  the  entries  upon  it  be- 
coming briefer,  and  the  handwriting  less  neat  and  cor- 
rect. Under  date  of  April  7,  1821,  we  find  this  entry : 
"  I  left  Bedford  for  Madison  this  day."  Again : 
"  Madison,  Tuesday,  April  10th,.  1821,  left  Madison  for 
Bedford  in  company  with  Mr.  Gibson  and  Mr.  Vail. 
We  walked  this  day  forty-five  miles.  We  left  North 
Ferry  llth  April,  and  reached  Cincinnati  April  12, 
thirty-two  miles.  I  left  Cincinnati  in  the  Wheeling 
packet,  Mr.  Knights,  captain,  which  I  thought  most 
expedient,  and  about  the  same  expense  as  travelling  on 
foot." 


CHAPTER    V. 

"Light-winged  hopes,  that  come  when  bid, 
And  rainbow  joys  that  end  in  weeping, 
And  passions  among  pure  thoughts  hid, 
Like  serpents  under  flow'rets  sleeping." 

"  Oh,  who,  when  fading  of  itself  away, 

Would  cloud  the  sunshine  of  his  little  day  ? 
Now  is  the  May  of  life.     Careering  round, 
Joy  wings  his  feet,  Joy  lifts  him  from  the  ground." 

POSSESSED,  as  the  subject  of  this  memoir  was,  of  a 
happy  temperament  and  an  uncommon  love  of  novelty, 
he,  without  doubt,  found  enough  in  those  Western  wilds, 
and  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio,  to  render  the  passage 
full  of  pleasing  incident.  Nothing  seems  to  have 
escaped  his  watchful  eye ;  and  his  retentive  memory 
enabled  him  to  relate  in  after  years,  in  a  most  vivid  and 
lifelike  manner,  the  events  and  incidents  of  his  West- 
ern tour.  His  journal  continues :  — 

Friday,  April  IStL  —  We  arrived  at  Maysville  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  left  there  the  same  morning  at 
clc.vcn  o'clock. 

Saturday,  14.th.  —  "We  reached  Portsmouth  at  seven  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  and  stopped  a  few  moments  to  receive  some 
wood  on  board,  and  then  set  sail  at  fifteen  minutes  past  ei.^Iit. 
This  morning  we  passed  the  lust-sailing  steamboats  Robert 
Thompson  and  Courier ;  at  night  passed  the  Velocipede,  all 
bound  to  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio. 

Sunday  Morning,  15th.  —  Stopped  at  Mr.  Vantumes,  to  re- 
4  (37) 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

ceive  wood,  and  then  proceeded  on  our  journey.  Stopped  also 
at  Point  Pleasant,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kanawha,  to  discharge 
part  of  the  cargo,  which  did  not  detain  us  long.  This  is  a  con- 
siderable river  of  Virginia,  navigable  about  two  hundred  miles 
with  keel  boats  ;  with  steam  eighty  or  ninety  miles. 

Monday  Morning,  April  Wth.  —  We  continued  our  journey 
with  considerable  speed  against  wind  and  current ;  this  even- 
ing we  passed  two  keel-boats  with  forty-two  missionaries, 
bound  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  up  the  Mississippi,  and  one 
hundred  and  fifty  up  the  Missouri,  to  the  Osage  village  of 
Indians.  May  the  Lord  preserve  them  and  bless  their  labors. ' 

Tuesday  Morning,  Ylth.  —  Continued  our  journey;  the 
weather  very  disagreeable,  raining  hard ;  we  stopped  to  receive 
some  wood,  which  detained  us  about  an  hour  and  a  half;  com- 
menced snowing  fast  this  morning  and  lasted  until  eleven  at 
night. 

Wednesday,  18tk.  —  We  arrived  at  Wheeling  at  five  o'clock, 
at  which  place  I  remained  but  a  few  hours. 

Little  did  he  think  at  that  time  that  in  a  few  years 
he  was  to  make  this  place  his  home,  and  then,  after 
years  of  sadness  and  degradation,  to  revisit  it  as  the 
Apostle  of  Temperance,  awakening  associations  of  the 
most  touching  character  in  the  minds  of  many  who 
knew  him  in  former  days. 

In  the  evening  stopped  at  John  Dagg's;  here  passed  the 
night ;  it  is  twenty-five  miles  from  Wheeling. 

Thursday,  I9th.  —  I  arrived  in  Washington,  Pa.,  in  the 
morning,  in  which  place  I  saw  Uncle  Charles  Hawkins  and 
Aunt  Orr,  who  received  me  with  much  friendship  and  affection! 
In  this  place  I  heard  the  Reverend  Mr.  Brown,  a  celebrated 
Presbyterian  clergyman. 

Easter  Monday,  April  23.  —  Left  Washington  and  arrived 
at  Mr.  Johnston's,  thirty  miles  distant,  on  foot,  and  remained 
for  the  night. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  39 

Arrived  at  Smithfield,  Tuesday  morning,  April  24th. 

25tk.  —  Left  Johnstown  and  arrived  at  Wentling's,  thirty- 
Oiree  miles.  Wednesday,  four  AM.,  left  Wentling's,  and  passed 
the  ruins  of  Washington's  station  (Fort  Necessity),  and  arrived 
at  Alexander  Sandford's,  Cumberland,  Md.,  where  we  remained 
for  the  night ;  forty  miles.  This  day,  at  twenty-five  minutes 
after  three,  arrived  on  the  top  of  Mount  Savage;  all  well. 

Thursday,  April  26th.  —  We  left  Cumberland  at  four  o'clock 
in  the  morning.  This  day  at  twelve  M.,  we  arrived  at  the  top  of 
Polished  Mountain,  very  much  worn  out,  but  still  kept  up  our 
spirits ;  reached  Rubery's  Tavern,  where  we  remained  for  the 
night.  This  evening  we  passed  eight  Cherokee  Indians,  re- 
turning from  Washington ;  they  were  all  chiefs  of  the  Cherokee 
nation  ;  walked  this  day  thirty  miles. 

Friday,  April  27.  —  Passed  Hancock,  leaving  Rubery's  sta- 
tion at  fifteen  minutes  after  six,  reached  the  top  of  Sideling  Hill 
and  arrived  in  the  evening  at  Kilpatrick's,  thirty  miles,  where 
we  remained  for  the  night. 

Here  the  journal  is  so  badly  written  as  to  be  scarcely 
legible. 

Saturday,  April  28.  —  Left  Kilpatrick's  at  three  AM.,  com- 
monly called  the  Boggy  Springs,  and  arrived  at  Deer  Stand, 
where  we  remained  for  the  night ;  forty  miles. 

Sunday,  April  29f/i,  1821.  —  I  arrived  at  cousin  N.  War- 
field's,  with  whom  I  remained  till  Monday,  April  30th. 

He  had  now  arrived  within  thirty  miles  of  his  home, 
Baltimore,  penniless  and  forlorn. 

In  the  dusk  of  the  evening,  in  the  month  of  May, 
1821,  an  individual  might  have  been  seen  stealing  his 
way  along  the  outskirts  of  the  city.  He  has  passed 
through  by-ways  until  he  reaches  a  residence  near  the 
cornci  of  Culvert  Street  and  Lovely  Lane.  As  he  ap- 
proaches the  front  of  the  house,  a  crowd  of  joyous 


40  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

girls  who  are  playing  there  open  their  ring  to  let  the 
stranger  pass ;  his  face  is  haggard,  and  he  walks  wearily 
as  one  worn  by  travel ;  perhaps  he  is  a  beggar,  with 
whom  they  fear  to  come  into  too  close  contact.  He 
passes  in  by  the  back  entrance,  and  inquires  of  the  ser- 
vants for  one  whom  in  former  days  he  loved  to  call 
"  Mother."  A  single  glance  sufficed  for  mother  and 
son  to  recognize  each  other. 

Of  this  event  in  his  life  he  thus  speaks  in  an  address 
delivered  in  Faneuil  HaU,  Boston,  in  April,  1841:  — 

When  twenty-two  years  of  age,  in  1818, 1  went  to  the  West. 
As  soon  as  I  was  away  from  paternal  care  I  gave  way ;  all 
went  by  the  board,  and  my  sufferings  commenced.  For  six 
months  I  had  no  shoes,  and  only  one  shirt  and  one  pair  of  pan- 
taloons. Then  I  was  a  vagabond  indeed.  But  I  returned, 
ragged  and  bloated,  to  my  mother's  home.  When  I  got  to  the 
edge  of  the  town  I  was  ashamed  even  to  walk  on  the  ground 
of  my  nativity.  In  the  dusk  of  the  evening  I  crept  along  to 
my  mother's,  and  was  soon  dressed  up  decently.  My  mother 
only  said,  «  John,  I  am  afraid  you  are  bloated."  '  I  then  drank 
nothing  for  a  while.* 

His  sister,  Mrs.  Frances  McC.  Schaeffer,  in  a  letter  to 
the  writer  says  :  "  I  was  at  home  on  a  visit  when  he 
returned,  and  never  shall  I  forget  his  appearance ;  he 
was  truly  the  prodigal  son;  "he  immediately  reformed, 
went  back  to  the  church,  and  joined  the  prayer  and 
class  meetings."  Finding  no  employment  in  Baltimore, 
he  went  immediately  to  Westminster,  Md.,  where  he 
had  heard  of  an  opening.  From  that  place  he  wrote 
as  follows :  — 

WESTMINSTER,  June  12,  1821. 

DEAR  FATHER  AND  MOTHER,  —  It  affords  me  much  satis- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  41 

faction  to  write  you  a  few  lines,  informing  you  that  I  am  well 
and  very  much  pleased  with  the  place.  Its  situation  is  very 
beautiful,  well  watered,  and  extremely  healthy.  The  people 
in  the  place  are  nearly  all  Germans,  but  appear  kind.  I  am  at 
work  for  Mr.  Nicholas  Leman,  who  is  a  German  ;  I  board  with 
him.  I  have  become  acquainted  with  Mrs.  D.'s  family ;  they 
treat  me  with  as  much  respect  as  if  I  was  her  son.  I  visit 
them  almost  every  evening.  I  have  also  become  acquainted 
with  two  old  ladies  here,  who  knew  my  father  and  grandfather 
in  Ireland.*  Grandfather  John  Hawkins  lived  near  their 
father's  farm.  I  have  as  much  work  as  I  can  do,  and  tolerable 
wages  ;  boarding  at  two  dollars  per  week. 

I  have  joined  society  here,  and  we  have  had  delightful  times  ; 
we  have  prayer  meeting  once  a  week,  preaching  every  other 
Sunday,  class  meeting  every  Sunday  at  Sister  D.'s.  Since 
coming  here  they  have  given  me  full  charge  of  the  Sunday 
school. 

I  shall  write  again  on  Monday  next,  by  Brother  Reese,  my 
ola-s-leader.  I  wish  you  to  send  me  without  fail  the  books  f 
Ruthy  has  of  mine  in  her  case,  for  the  use  of  the  Sunday 
school ;  they  consist  of  a  parcel  of  Testaments,  Psalters,  spell- 
ing-books, and  New  York  Primers.  If  you  cannot  send  them 
by  Mr.  Leman,  have  them  ready  for  Mr.  Reese  next  Monday. 
I  expect  to  be  down  on  the  Fourth  of  July.  My  expenses 
from  Baltimore  to  this  place  were  only  six  and  one-fourth  cents  ; 
that  is  cheap  traveling. 

Give  my  love  to  all  the  family,  to  Dr.  Martin,  and  to  all  who 
may  inquire  after  me.     Remember  the  books,  please. 
I  remain,  very  affectionately,  yours, 

JOHN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

*  Several  members  of  tlio  Hawkins  family  emigrated  from  England  to 
Ireland  in  tho  eighteenth  century. 

t  Those  were  the  hooks  which  he  had  purchased  when  an  apprentice  for 
the  Sunday  school  on  Fell's   I'oini,  liultimore,  and  which  had  been  care 
fully  laid  away  on  his  departure  for  the  WCM. 
4* 


42  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Feeling  a  little  impatient  at  not  receiving  the  books 
by  Mr.  Leman,  he  writes  again  on  the  18th. 

WESTMINSTER,  FREDERICK  Co.,  MD.,  June  18th,  1821. 

DEAR  MOTHER,  —  It  affords  me  much  satisfaction  to  hear 
from  you  at  any  time  and  by  any  source. 

In  the  letter  I  wrote  last  week,  I  requested  you  to  send  me 
the  books  that  are  in  Ruthy's  bookcase. "  Probably  you  have 
not  the  key ;  if  you  have  not,  I  wish  you  to  get  them  out  by 
some  means,  and  send  them  to  me  by  Mr.  Reese,  as  we  are  in 
want  of  them  for  the  Sunday  school,  as  we  are  out  of  books. 
The  gentleman  who  will  hand  you  this  is  Brother  Andrew 
Reese,  my  class-leader,  one  of  the  best  of  men. 

Do  not  fail  to  send  the  books.  You  will  please  send  me  a 
box  of  wafers.  Give  my  love  to  all. 

You  may  expect  me  down  on  a  visit  on  the  3d  of  July. 
I  remain,  as  ever,  your  affectionate  son, 

J.  H.  "W.  HAWKINS. 

On  returning  to  the  city  of  Baltimore,  in  July,  1821, 
Mr.  Hawkins  found  business  in  much  better  condition, 
and  obtained  regular  employment  at  the  hat  factory  of 
Messrs.  Lamson  and  Clapp.  On  January  23,  1822,  he 
went  to  Annapolis,  Md.,  where  he  remained  at  work 
until  May  30,  1822,  when  he  returned  to  Baltimore 
and  recommenced  work  for  Messrs.  Lamson  and  Clapp. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

"  Across  the  threshold  led, 
And  every  tear  kissed  off  as  soon  as  shed, 
His  house  she  enters,  there  to  be  a  light 
Shining  within  when  all  without  is  night ; 
A  guardian  angel  o'er  his  life  presiding, 
Doubling  his  pleasure,  and  his  caresi^dividing." 

LIVING  at  home,  under  the  eye  of  his  mother,  and 
having  permanent  occupation,  Mr.  Hawkins'  deport- 
ment at  this  time  was  creditable  to  his  family,  and  he 
was  himself  regarded  as  an  honor  to  the  church  to 
which  he  belonged.  His  Sundays  were  spent  at  church 
and  in  the  Sunday  school,  to  which  he  was  devotedly 
attached.  The  favorable  influence  which  he  exerted 
upon  the  young  men  of  his  acquaintance  was  a  subject 
of  frequent  remark.  His  relatives,  in  whose  society  he 
loved  to  be,  were  occupying  influential  positions  in 
society  and  in  the  church,  and  he  had  thereby  many 
safeguards  thrown  around  him.  Besides,  he  had  re- 
newed his  acquaintance  with  a  most  amiable  and  pious 
young  lady,  Miss  Rachel  Thompson,  daughter  of 
Joseph  Thompson,  Esq.,  of  Baltimore,  whom  he  had 
frequently  met  before  his  first  visit  to  the  West,  and 
whom  he  had  never  forgotten. 

The  union  of  these  persons,  both  of  them  about  the 
same  age,  was  regarded  by  parents  and  friends  as  most 
auspicious  for  their  future  welfare.  They  were  mem- 
bers of  the  same  church,  and  equally  anxious  to  be 

(43) 


44  LIFE   OF   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

useful  members  of  society  ;  and  their  attachment  was 
of  the  most  tender  and  affectionate  kind.  They  were 
married  on  Christmas-day,  December  the  25th,  1822, 
by  the  Rev.  George  B.  Sehaeffer,  brother-in-law  of  the 
bridegroom. 

For  a  number  of  years  their  married  life  seemed  to 
glide  happily  on  with  little  of  incident  to  mark  its 
progress.  He  was  faithful  to  his  business,  and  the 
weekly  fruits  of  his  industry  afforded  ample  support. 
Remaining  with  his  mother  until  their  first  child  was  a 
few  months  old,  they  commenced  housekeeping  in 
September,  1824.  Their  first  and  only  son,  William 
George,  was  bom  October  22d,  1823  ;  their  first  daugh- 
ter, Elizabeth  Dorsey,  was  born  July  6th,  1825 ;  the 
second,  Hannah  "Woolsey,  on  June  15th,  1827. 

During  all  these  years,  up  to  1828,  Mr.  Hawkins 
enjoyed  almost  uninterrupted  domestic  comfort.  In 
conformity  with  the  customs  of  society  at  that  day, 
there  is  little  doubt  that  he  indulged  moderately  in  the 
use  of  stimulating  beverages,  but  he  was  careful  not  to 
run  into  excess  ;  or,  if  he  did,  his  sense  of  self-respect 
led  him  to  keep  the  fact  from  the  knowledge  of  his 
family  and  friends.  It  was  not  until  years  after,  that 
the  demon  of  the  still  acquired  such  power  over  him  as 
to  rob  him  of  all  self-respect,  and  reduce  him  and  his 
family  to  wretchedness  almost  insupportable.  Had  he 
lived  in  this  day,  with  habits  such  as  his  then  were, 
he  might  have  been  classed  as  a  genteel,  moderate 
drinker,  having  too  much  politeness  not  to  furnish  the 
visitors  at  his  house  with  a  social  glass,  or  to  refuse  one 
when  proffered  in  return. 

An  intimate  friend  and  fellow-laborer  who  knew 
him  well  at  the  period  referred  to,  and  who  has  since 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS.  45 

reached  a  high  position  in  his  native  State, —  Hon. 
Joshua  Vansant,  of  Baltimore,  —  says  of  him,  that  a 
more  delightful  companion  than  John  Hawkins  he 
never  had,  and  although  many  years  acquainted  with 
him  after  his  first  marriage,  he  never  once  saw  him 
under  the  influence  of  liquor  in  a  manner  to  excite  any 
unpleasant  feelings  in  others.  Of  an  exceedingly  social 
nature,  his  company  was  much  sought  for  by  his  fel- 
low-craftsmen, and  many  a  pleasant  story  enlivened 
their  evening  gatherings.  He  was  fond  of  a  good  joke, 
and  possessing  an  exceedingly  retentive  memory  he 
was  never  at  a  loss  for  entertaining  topics  of  conversa- 
tion. 

Although  doing  well  at  his  business  as  a  journey- 
man, he  determined,  with  the  assistance  of  his  wife's 
relatives  and  at  their  solicitation,  to  remove  to  Wheel- 
ing, Va.,  and  commence  the  business  of  manufacturing 
hats  on  a  large  scale.  Having  so  decided,  he  arranged 
his  affairs  in  Baltimore,  employed  a  large  Western 
freight  wagon,  drawn  by  six  horses  and  covered  with 
canvas,  and  having  packed  his  household  effects  in  its 
ample  enclosure,  sent  it  off  in  advance,  late  in  April, 
1828,  and  followed  with  his  wife  and  three  little  ones, 
making  the  journey  part  of  the  way  by  stages,  and 
•when  the  weather  and  roads  were  good,  by  wagon. 
Having  reached  Cumberland.  Md.,  in  safety,  he  dis- 
patched the  following  letter  to  his  parents :  — 

CUMBERLAND,  MD.,  April  30,  1828. 

DEAR  FATHER  AND  MOTHER,  —  In  haste  I  inform  you 
that  we  arrived  in  Cumberland  on  Wednesday,  30th,  all  well, 
liuchel  was  very  sick  (lie  firsl;  und  second  day,  but  the  lime- 
stone water  has  done  her  much  good.  Rachel  and  myself 


46  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

walked  over  Sideling  Hill  from  its  foot  on  one  side  to  its  base 
on  the  other,  with  the  babe  in  our  arms  [this  was  his  daughter 
Hannah,  then  an  infant  but  ten  months  old],  with  a  great  deal 
of  comfort.  The  babe  is  doing  well,  and  the  other  children  are 
getting  fat.  What  I  have  written  is  in  great  haste.  I  will 
write  you  more  particularly  from  Wheeling.  It  has  cost  us 
but  five  dollars  to  Cumberland,  exclusive  of  our  provision  ; 
this  is  cheap  travelling.  Love  to  all. 

Yours,  &c.  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


WHEELING,  May  9,  1828. 

DEAR  FATHER  AND  MOTHER,  —  We  arrived  safely  in  this 
place  yesterday  afternoon,  without  the  least  accident  happening 
to  us.  The  wagoner  treated  us  with  all  the  kindness  and  atten- 
tion possible.  We  are  at  present  boarding  with  Mrs.  Simmons, 
until  a  house  is  finished  which  Mr.  Thompson  engaged  for  us. 
As  respects  my  prospects,  I  cannot  say  anything  at  present, 
but  will  let  you  know  as  soon  as  we  get  a  little  settled.  I  ex- 
pect next  Monday  to  go  up  to  Steubenville  on  a  little  visit  with 
all  the  family,  a  distance  of  twenty-two  miles.  The  passage 
for  all  about  two  dollars.  We  remained  all  night  in  Washing- 
ton on  our  way  out,  and  breakfasted  with  Uncle  Charles  Hawk- 
ins, who  treated  us  kindly  and  desired  to  be  remembered  to  you 
all.  Mr.  Thompson  and  Charlotte  desire  to  be  remembered  to  you 
all.  Eachel  and  the  children  are  in  good  health,  and  desires  to 
be  remembered  particularly  to  her  father  and  to  Mr.  Tuttle's 
family.  I  have  nothing  more  to  write  at  present,  but  remain, 
Yours,  «fec.  J.  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Of  the  great  conflagration  that  took  place  in  Wheel- 
ing in  1828  he  thus  writes :  — 

(TO    MR.   JOHN    BAXLEY.) 

WHEELING,  Dec.  7,  1828. 

DEAR  SIR,  —  It  is  with  much  pain  I  communicate   to  you 
the  intelligence  of  a  great  fire  in  this  place.     On  Wednesday 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  47 

evening  last,  about  six  o'clock,  while  Mr.  Young,  the  bearer  of 
your  letter,  was  sitting  with  us,  we  heard  the  cry  of  "  Fire  !  " 
It  proceeded  from  the  stable  of  Messrs.  Graham  and  Fisher, 
or  in  the  stable  of  Charles  Knox,  adjoining,  it  is  not  known 
certainly  which.  There  was  a  strong  south-west  wind  blowing 
at  the  time,  and  every  thing  was  dry.  The  flames  spread  with 
appalling  rapidity,  and  it  appeared  for  a  time  as  if  a  large 
part  of  the  town  would  inevitably  be  destroyed.  [After  recapit- 
ulating the  losses,  which  embraced  a  large  part  of  the  town,  he 
proceeds].  Much  is  due  to  the  ladies  of  the  place ;  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  to  two  hundred  placed  themselves  in  the  ranks, 
handing  buckets  of  water,  others  standing  in  the  river  handing 
water,  while  others  were  busily  engaged  in  saving  goods,  and 
among  them  the  most  respectable  and  wealthy  in  the  place. 
One  of  Mr.  Thompson's  [his  brother-in-law]  stores  was  several 
times  on  fire,  and  burned  off  nearly  half  of  the  roof.  Mr.  T. 
was  down  the  river  at  the  time.  I  would  write  you  more 
about  the  fire,  but  you  will  no  doubt  hear  more  particularly 
through  the  papers. 

Rachel  has  been  sick,  but  is  getting  better.  Poor  little 
William  has  been  very  ill  of  an  attack  of  bilious  fever;  I 
thought  at  one  time  I  should  lose  him,  but  he  is  getting  better. 
He  has  not  eaten  a  pound  for  two  weeks.  The  rest  of  the 
family  are  well.  As  respects  my  business  I  am  still  doing  be- 
yond my  expectations.  I  have  done  well  both  at  wholesale  and 
retail,  and  have  several  hundred  dollars'  worth  of  hats  and  ma- 
terial on  hand.  I  have  in  my  employ  two  journeymen  and  two 
boys,  at  making  hats,  and  I  am  busily  employed  in  finishing 
them.  I  have  some  notion  of  visiting  you  in  the  spring  or  fall. 
1  will  however  let  you  know  very  soon.  Tell  Cousin  Dennis 
to  send  my  paper  regularly. 

I  wish  you  to  send  me  by  private  conveyance  Alexander 
McCaine's  Reply  and  the  proceedings  of  the  Convention.* 

*  Some  little  disaffection,  it  seems,  had  occurred  about  this  time 
.amongst  the  Methodists  of  Baltimore.  It  was  thought  that  arbitrary 


48  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

As  respects  reform  in  this  place  every  thing  is  quiet.  I  know 
not  what  course  to  pursue ;  I  would  have  written  to  the  Con- 
vention on  the  subject  of  my  case,  but  took  it  for  granted  some 
one  would  think  of  me.  I  now  wish  you  to  mention  it  to  the 
association,  or  some  member  thereof,  to  give  me  some  instruc- 
tions which  way  to  steer  my  course,  as  there  is  no  Union  So- 
ciety here  and  no  probability  of  forming  one.  Let  me  hear  from 
you  soon.  No  more  at  present. 

I  remain,  yours,  respectfully, . 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

In  several  letters  that  follow  he  speaks  of  the  general 
depression  in  business  in  Wheeling,  and  in  one  of  them, 
to  his  mother,  communicates  the  intelligence  of  the 
birth  of  twin  daughters,  one  of  whom  he  named  Fran- 
ces, for  his  sister,  and  the  other  Susan,  for  his  wife's 
sister;  both  of  them  died  in  infancy.  In  a  letter 
written  in  May,  1829,  after  making  mention  of  the  fact 
that  his  wife  had  connected  herself  with  the  M.  E. 
Church,  he  adds :  — 

/  am  like  a  sheep,  wandering,  wandering,  I  scarcely  know 
where  ;  however,  I  trust  Providence  will  provide  a  way  for  me 
ere  long,  *  *  * 

I  must  hasten  through ;  John  Brown  *  is  about  starting.  I 
have  written  for  all  the  small  conch  shells  you  can  raise  amongst 
you,  as  well  as  for  some  oysters.  I  must  now  close,  by  request- 
ing you  to  give  our  love  to  all  friends  without  discrimination. 
You  write  that  you  heard  Pompey  [a  faithful  watch-dog]  did 
not  arrive.  Mr.  Crawford  brought  him  safe  to  me,  and  he 

measures  had  been  pursued  in  reference  to  some.     Most  of  the  difficulties 
were  soon  after  reconciled. 

*  This  was  the  faithful  teamster,  who  with  his  six-horse  wagon  had 
brought  Mr.  Hawkins  and  family  safely  over  the  Alleghanies. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  49 

is  with  me  yet.     I  have  been  offered  fifteen  dollars  for  him, 
but  am  too  much  attached  to  him  to  part  with  him. 
I  remain,  as  ever, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Failing  in  his  business  operations  in  Wheeling,  he 
began  to  entertain  the  project  of  re-crossing  the  Alle- 
ghanies,  and  seeking  a  home  and  employment  in  his 
native  city.  His  failure  was  attributable,  in  part  at 
least,  to  the  general  depression  in  trade,  and  losses  sus- 
tained in  business ;  but  there  were  other  causes  con- 
tributing to  the  same  result.  There  is  no  doubt  that 
he  at  this  time  indulged  daily,  although  perhaps  mod- 
erately, in  the  use  of  intoxicating  beverages ;  he  was 
exceedingly  social  in  his  habits,  and  his  expenses  were 
thereby  increased;  he  was  liberal,  almost  to  a  fault, 
and  generous,  and  never  refused  to  aid  a  friend. 

But  the  days  of  darkness  were  now  beginning  to 
draw  nigh.  His  wife,  whom  he  tenderly  loved,  and 
whose  only  source  of  grief  was  his  waywardness,  began 
to  decline  in  health.  Influenced  by  the  consideration 
that  the  change  to  Baltimore  would  be  beneficial  to 
her  health,  he  decided  to  remove.  The  writer  of  this, 
then  a  child  seven  years  old,  well  remembers  that  jour- 
ney under  the  careful  guidance  of  John  Brown,  the 
faithful  Western  teamster;  often  did  the  kind  man 
place  him  upon  the  saddle-horse,  where,  with  reins  in 
hand,  he  imagined  in  his  childish  heart  that  the  noble 
team  was  moving  under  his  direction ;  frequently  his 
father  would  procure  a  private  carriage  and  drive  on- 
ward to  an  advanced  station,  and  thus  enable  his  mother 
to  rest  until  the  team  came  up.  Railroads  were  not 
then  in  existence,  at  least  in  the  West,  and  the  only 


50  LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

modes  of  travel  were  by  the  rough  stages  or  by  private 
conveyances. 

It  was  in  the  summer  time  when  the  returning  emi- 
grants passed  along  amid  the  wild  scenery  of  Western 
Pennsylvania,  and-  into  the  territory  of  Maryland.  It 
was  the  fourth  journey  which  the  father  had  made 
through  the  Western  wilderness,  and  every  portion  of 
the  way  had  become  associated  in  his  memory  with 
some  interesting  incidents,  which,  as  they  travelled 
along,  he  narrated  to  his  wife  and  children.  Here  he 
once  met  the  chiefs  of  Indian  tribes,  returning  from 
Washington,  laden  with  presents  from  their  "  Great 
Father  ; "  there  the  stage-coach  in  which  he  was  riding 
came  near  being  dashed  over  the  precipice  by  a  careless 
or  drunken  driver.  Now  he  would  call  their  attention 
to  a  deer  bounding  across  the  highway  into  the  depths 
of  the  dense  forest ;  and  then,  when  approaching  the 
confines  of  agricultural  industry,  where  the  waving 
grain  glittered  in  the  noonday  sun,  he  would  go  off  into 
the  fields  and  orchards  and  purchase  of  the  obliging 
farmers  milk  and  fruits  to  gratify  their  simple  tastes. 
Thus  the  journey,  for  the  children  at  least,  was  relieved 
of  its  tediousness.  But  the  mother's  health  was  far 
from  improving ;  she  was  falling  into  a  gradual  decline ; 
she  was  siezed  with  a  consumptive  cough,  which  no 
remedy  seemed  able  to  reach.  The  best  medical  ad- 
vice was  sought  for,  and  every  remedy  employed  which 
was  supposed  to  possess  any  virtue ;  but  in  vain. 

A  kinder  husband  and  parent  than  Mr.  Hawkins  did 
not  exist,  and  no  comfort  that  his  means  enabled  him 
to  provide  was  denied  to  his  family.  The  chief  object 
of  his  solicitude  at  this  time  was  his  wife ;  could  any 
thing  be  done  to  preserve  her  life  ?  The  conviction 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  51 

was  fast  forcing  itself  upon  his  mind,  that  she  must 
ere  long  take  her  departure  from  earth,  and  leave  him 
in  darkness  to  finish  his  course  alone. 
.  Reaching  Baltimore,  he  was  soon  comfortably  estab- 
lished at  housekeeping,  and  being  an  industrious  and 
expert  workman,  he  immediately  obtained  employment 
at  the  hat  manufactory  of  Jacob  Rogers  and  Son. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

"  Can  this  be  death  ?  there's  bloom  upon  her  cheek  : 
But  now  I  see  it  is  no  living  hue, 
But  a  strange  hectic  —  like  the  unnatural  red 
Which  Autumn  paints  upon  the  perished  leaf. 
It  is  the  same  !     O  God  !  that  I  should  dread 
To  look  upon  the  same  ! " 

THE  numerous  relatives  who  gathered  around  the 
death-bed  of  that  wife  and  mother,  on  the  23rd  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1832,  testify  that  a  more  triumphant  vindication 
of  the  power  of  the  blessed  religion  of  Jesus  to  soothe 
the  dying  hour,  they  had  seldom,  if  ever,  witnessed. 
Her  countenance  was  illumined  with  a  brightness  which 
seemed  not  of  earth  ;  her  parting  words  touched  every 
heart,  as  she  spoke  to  her  stricken  partner  of  her  loved 
offspring,  then  standing  by  her  bedside.  Her  womanly 
faith  felt  that  she  could  leave  them  in  the  hands  of  God, 
with  a  confident  assurance  that  he  would  preserve  and 
defend  them  on  earth,  and  at  length  conduct  them  to 
that  home  above,  where  parting  and  tears  are  un- 
known. 

Having  spoken  her  final  words  in  feeble  accents,  the 
sweet  song  of  Zion  was  sung,  — 

"  Jesus  can  make  a  dying  bed 

Feel  soft  as  downy  pillows  are  ; 
While  on  his  breast  I  lean  my  head, 
And  breathe  my  life  out  sweetly  there." 

It  was  a  dark  and  gloomy  day  on  which   they  bore 

(52) 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.    W.   HAWKINS.  53 

her  to  her  final  resting  place  in  the  cemetery.     She 
was  but  thirty-three  years  of  age  when  she  parted  from 


"  Early,  bright,  transient,  chaste  as  morning  dew, 
She  sparkled,  was  exhaled,  and  went  to  heaven." 

That  dark  day,  to  her  bereft  partner,  was  but  the 
precursor  of  a  darker  night.  It  did  not  come  suddenly, 
but  gradually  and  surely.  Left  with  four  children,  the 
youngest  an  infant,  the  others,  five,  seven,  and  nine 
years  of  age,  for  a  few  years  he  entirely  reformed  his 
drinking  habits,  was  devout  in  the  performance  of  his 
religious  duties,  and  sought  the  consolations  of  religion. 
His  pious  mother  was  unremitting  in  her  attentions, 
and  in  administering  consolations,  and  to  her  he  con- 
stantly looked  for  sympathy.  The  infant,  Frances  Ann 
Hawkins,  died  in  the  month  of  August  succeeding  the 
death  of  her  mother. 

The  letters  at  this  period  from  the  bereaved  husband 
to  his  mother,  are  brief;  his  heart  is  sad,  but  he  strug- 
gles to  maintain  his  usual  cheerfulness.  The  cholera 
had  made  its  appearance  in  Philadelphia,  and  was  in- 
creasing with  fearful  rapidity.  "  The  cholera  has  in- 
creased in  that  city,"  he  writes,  "  from  one  hundred  and 
twenty-three  cases,  to  one  hundred  and  seventy-one,  in 
the  last  twenty-four  hours."  It  soon  made  its  appear- 
ance in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  and  so  great  was  the 
panic,  that  many  employers  discharged  their  men,  fear- 
ing to  keep  such  large  numbers  together.  "Jacob 
Rogers,"  he  writes,  "  discharged  every  man  in  his  estab- 
lishment this  morning,  myself  among  the  rest."  He 
expresses  his  thankfulness  that  his  mother  is  in  t In- 
country,  away  from  the  danger.  She  was  residing  at 


5* 


54  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

this  time  a  number  of  miles  from  the  city,  near  Mere- 
dith Ford,  on  the  Gunpowder  Falls.  Her  sons  often 
visited  her,  and  kept  her  advised  in  respect  to  the  health 
of  her  numerous  offspring,  and  their  families  in  Balti- 
more. 

Early  in  the  summer  after  their  mother's  death,  the 
two  daughters,  Elizabeth  and  Hannah,  were  placed  at 
a  private  boarding-school  in  Baltimore,  where  they  re- 
mained for  more  than  a  year.  During  this  period,  and 
until  his  second  marriage,  on  May  4th,  1834,  their  father 
was  steadily  engaged  at  his  trade,  and  doing  all  in  his 
power  to  educate  his  children.  His  daughters  remem- 
ber his  constant  visits  at  their  boarding-school  on  Sab- 
bath afternoons,  the  labors  of  the  week  over,  and  his 
Sabbath  duties,  sometimes  as  superintendent  and  at 
other  times  as  teacher,  performed.  Being  an  ardent 
lover  of  nature,  he  often,  with  his  children  at  his  side, 
strolled  away  into  the  green  fields,  and  by  appropriate 
conversation  strove  to  lead  their  youthful  minds  to  con- 
template the  Maker's  ways,  in  the  sky  and  earth  and 
air.  Frequently,  when  in  a  contemplative  mood,  would 
he  visit  the  humble  grave  where  Rachel,  the  affectionate 
wife,  the  pious  and  tender  mother,  reposed.  This  visit 
always'  brought  tears  to  his  eyes,  as  he  remembered  the 
past;  as  the  harrowing  thoughts  of  his  former  way- 
wardness rose  to  his  view.  How  was  his  heart  wrung 
with  anguish !  Had  he  ever  brought  a  pang  of  sorrow 
to  that  dear  one's  heart  ?  "  My  children,"  he  would 
say,  "  your  precious,  sainted  mother,  lies  here ;  let  us 
strive  to  meet  her  in  the  mansions  above."  Year  after 
year,  in  the  summer  time,  often  early  in  the  spring,  did 
he  visit  that  grave. 

In  process  of  time  came  the  second  marriage*     He 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  55 

was  married  to  Mrs.  Ann  Gibson  Ruth,  in  Baltimore, 
by  the  Rev.  W.  W.  Wallace,  on  May  4th,  1834.  His 
son  had  been  placed  under  the  instruction  of  his  grand- 
father, the  Rev.  John  Baxley  ;  the  daughters  were  cared 
for  by  a  thoughtful  mother. 

Mr.  Hawkins,  soon  after,  was  again  without  employ- 
ment. Then  came  days  and  months  of  suffering.  The 
years  1836-8  were  years  of  great  financial  distress. 
The  general  failures  of  the  mercantile  interests  which 
took  place  in  1837,  affected,  through  them,  the  business 
of  the  mechanic  and  the  farmer,  nor  did  the  evil  stop 
until  it  had  effected  the  reduction  of  the  wages  of  even 
the  day-laborer. 

Notwithstanding  his  many  trials  and  misfortunes, 
and  his  occasional  departures  from  virtue's  ways,  Mr. 
Hawkins,  constantly  gave  evidence  of  the  possession 
of  a  tender  conscience,  and  of  desires  to  do  right.  Nor 
was  he  left  without  the  influences  of  heavenly  grace  ; 
struggling  in  the  enthrallment  of  appetite  and  passion, 
he  did  not  utterly  forswear  or  abandon  his  allegiance 
to  his  Maker  ;  —  while  he  would  do  good,  the  evil  was 
present  with  him.  He  had  often,  by  the  exercise  of  his 
own  strong  will,  broken  away  from  the  tempter's  horrid 
enchantments,  and  fled  with  hurried  steps  from  the 
haunts  of  inebriation.  Then  would  the  noble  qualities 
of  his  heart  shine  forth ;  and  every  Sabbath  during  a 
year  at  a  time,  perhaps,  would  he  walk  to  the  house 
of  God  in  company  with  his  son,  a  youth  of  tender 
age.  His  solicitude  that  that  son  might  lead  a  virtu- 
ous and  a  Christian  life  was  never  intermitted,  until  at 
length,  in  1837,  he  saw  his  youthful  footsteps  approach 
the  altar  of  consecration  to  the  Master's  service,  and 
heard  the  venerable  minister  pronounce  his  blessing. 


56  LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

praying  that  he  might  lead  the  rest  of  his  life  according 
to  this  beginning.  The  parent  never  ceased  to  feel  the 
deepest  interest  in  the  instruction  of  his  son  in  all  useful 
knowledge  ;  and  often  after  the  weary  hours  of  severe 
labor  were  over,  would  he  sit  patiently  down  to  the 
task  of  educating  and  training  his  opening  mind. 

The  year  1836  witnessed  one  of  those  terrible  re- 
lapses, which  was  not  only  distressing  to  the  family 
and  friends  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  but  which  left  him  in  a 
deeply  depressed  state  of  mind.  He  began  to  think 
that  there  was  no  hope  for  him ;  that  he  must  be  lost, 
morally  and  physically,  for  time  and  eternity.  But  he 
resolved  to  make  one  more  struggle.  After  days  of 
entire  abstinence  and  attention  to  business,  an  incident 
occurred  which  produced  a  decided  change  in  his  feel- 
ings, and  led  to  the  formation  of  new  and  .important 
resolutions.  Returning  home  one  evening,  passing  by 
a  Roman  Catholic  Church  at  the  hour  for  prayer,  he 
observed  a  miserable  foreign  beggar  kneeling,  and 
engaged  in  earnest  prayer,  on  the  steps  of  the  church. 
"  Well,"  thought  he,  "  if  this  poor  wretch  is  thankful 
to  Heaven  for  his  crust  of  bread,  how  ungrateful  a  being 
must  I  be  to  pervert  the  greater  blessing  bestowed  upon 
me."  The  reflection  was  followed  by  the  resolution  to 
reform  his  life,  and  to  reenter  upon  the  performance  of 
his  religious  duties.  He  sought  religious  guidance  in 
the  prayer  meeting  of  the  Methodist  chapel  near  his 
dwelling,  and  God  listened  to  his  earnest  entreaties. 

The  following  letter  written  to  his  son,  who  was  still 
in  the  country,  pursuing  his  studies  under  the  tuition 
of  his  grandfather,  Rev.  Mr.  Baxley,  exhibits  the  state 
of  his  mind  at  this  time. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  57 

BALTIMORE,  May  15,  1836. 

MY  DEAR  SON, —  It  gives  me  pleasure  to  inform  you  what 
has  happened  in  our  family  since  your  grandmother  left  here. 
On  Friday  night  last,  while  we  were  sitting  in  the  room,  the 
power  of  God  came  down  and  converted  the  souls  of  myself  and 
your  mother.  Oh,  what  an  ungrateful  sinner  I  have  been  against 
so  good  and  merciful  a  God ;  how  kind  he  has  been  to  me, 
while  I  willingly  and  wickedly,  with  my  eyes  open  and  his 
spirit  knocking  every  day  at  my  heart,  warning  me  of  my  sins, 
was  yet  resisting,  until  at  length  he  has  spoken  in  more  power- 
ful terms,  "  HEPENT  OR  YOU  WILL  BE  DAMNED  FOREVER  ! " 
Glory  to  God !  I  have  obeyed,  and  can  now  say  of  a  truth, 
he  has  power  on  earth  to  forgive  the  worst  of  sinners.  Your 
two  sisters  have  consented  to  go  with  us  to  heaven.  And  now 
I  ask  you,  my  son,  my  dear  son,  will  you  agree  to  go  with  us  ? 
Yes,  I  seem  to  hear  your  young  heart  say,  Father,  I  will  go 
with  you,  and  by  the  help  of  God  possess  the  land. 

Last  Sunday  I  was  at  class  meeting,  and  there  I  saw  little 
boys,  no  older  than  you,  declare  that  God  has  power,  on  earth, 
to  forgive  sin ;  and  why  can  you  not  realize  that  power  ?  You 
can,  if  you  will  but  pray.  My  dear  son,  do  not  rest  until  you 
feel  the  pardoning  love  of  God.  I  could  write  more,  but  want 
to  see  you  all,  to  tell  you  all  I  feel. 

Give  our  love  to  grandfather  and  grandmother,  and  tell 
them  their  prayers  are  answered.  Yes,  their  midnight  groan- 
ings  they  have  so  often  poured  out  for  the  salvation  of  my  soul. 

Keep  this  letter,  and  read  it  often,  and  pray  that  the  contents 
of  it  may  be  fulfilled  to  your  salvation.  No  more ;  I  subscribe 
myself  your  father,  most  affectionately.  Your  sister  and  your 
mother  join  me  in  love  to  you  all. 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 
To  WM.  G.  HAWKINS, 

Ellicott's  Mills,  Md. 

How  those  glad  tidings  affected  his  parents,  he  ap- 
pears impatient  to  learn  ;  for  he  adds  in  a  postscript,  — 


58  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.    W.   HAWKINS. 

I  want  you  to  come  in  [to  Baltimore],  on  Friday,  without 
fail,  and  bring  a  letter  of  consolation  from  your  grandfather 
and  grandmother.  J.  H.  "W.  H. 

The  years  1837-8,  as  has  been  remarked,  were  sea- 
sons of  great  distress  throughout  the  country.  Mer- 
cantile and  mechanical  operations  were  extensively 
suspended,  and  artisans  of  almost  every  kind  were 
thrown  out  of  employment.  The  manufacture  of  fur 
hats  was  rapidly  declining  —  other  textures  taking  their 
place. 

During  these  years,  and  the  succeeding,  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins found  but  little  to  do  at  his  trade,  and  was  forced 
to  seek  other  means  of  supporting  his  family.  Some- 
times he  became  discouraged,  and  sought,  too  often, 
alas !  to  drown  his  sorrows  in  the  inebriating  cup ;  a 
fatal  appetite  for  which  had  wrought  in  him  a  dan- 
gerous proclivity  to  excess. 

His  wife,  and  his  daughters,  Elizabeth  and  Hannah, 
sought  in  every  way  in  their  power  to  comfort  him  in 
his  distresses,  and  by  affectionate  entreaty  to  win  him 
from  the  fatal  indulgence.  He  had  always  a  tender 
conscience,  and  the  pleading  of  his  youngest  child 
seemed  deeply  to  affect  him,  while  it  sent  many  a  pang 
of  remorse  to  his  sorrow-stricken  heart.  But  the  fatal 
appetite  too  often  made  him  deaf  to  entreaty,  and 
hushed  the  whisperings  of  conscience. 

The  following  letters,  one  from  his  mother,  and  the 
other  his  reply,  will  throw  some  light  upon  his  condi- 
tion and  feelings  at  this  period. 

HAVRE  DE  GRACE,  MD.,  Feb.  7,  1838. 

DEAR  SON,  —  I  send  by  Mrs.  S the  articles  I  promised 

for  your  wife  and  daughter,  which  I  hope  will  make  them  coin- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  59 

fortable  this  cold  weather.  We  are  all  well,  and  hope  to  hear 
that  yourself  and  family  are  well,  and  that  you  are  engaged  in 
some  employment  which  enables  you  to  provide  for  your  imme- 
diate wants.  It  is  likely  your  son  William  George  will  come 
to  town  in  a  few  weeks,  perhaps  the  last  of  this  month,  if  he 
finishes  his  course  of  book-keeping  in  which  he  is  now  engaged. 

I  have  only  to  add,  that  our  earnest  prayers  for  your  salva- 
tion, and  that  of  your  wife  ard  children,  are  daily  offered  at 
the  throne  of  God's  grace.  Oh,  let  them  not  be  offered  in 
vain !  Remember  what  you  once  were,  and,  my  dear  son,  re- 
turn to  the  Lord  with  all  your  heart ;  you  will  never  be  happy 
till  you  get  religion  ;  be  prevailed  upon  to  give  up  every  thing 
that  hinders  you,  and  pray  in  secret,  and  in  your  family.  It 
will  be  my  great  comfort  in  my  dying  hour,  to  know  that  all 
my  children  are  following  their  father  and  myself  to  heaven 
and  glory. 

Wishing  you  and  yours  the  choicest  blessings  of  the  gospel, 
and  the  earthly  blessings  promised  to  those  who  seek  the  king- 
dom of  God  and  his  righteousness,  I  remain,  my  dear  John, 
Your  very  affectionate  mother, 

ELIZABETH  BAXLEY. 

BALTIMORE,  Feb.  12,  1838. 

DEAR  MOTHER  AND  FATHER, —  Your  letter  of  the  7th 

.  came  safe  to  hand  by  Mrs.  S ,  and  we  are  thankful  to  you 

for  the  articles  sent ;  they  have  come  in  good  season. 

You  cannot  imagine  the  trouble  of  mind  I  have  and  am  still 
passing  through  for  the  want  of  employment  at  my  own  busi- 
ness ;  and  there  is  but  little  prospect  yet.  I  have  had  about 
three  weeks'  work,  in  a  bake-house,  for  one  dollar  per  day, 
working  from  one,  two,  and  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  until 
seven  and  eight  at  night,  with  scarcely  any  rest,  and  that  at 
my  meals  only,  which  I  have  sent  to  me. 

I  am  willing  to  work,  but  I  could  not  stand  it  and  was  com- 
pdlcd  to  quit  it  for  awhile.  I  feel,  however,  relieved ;  my 


60  LIFE  OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

rent  is  all  paid  and  I  have  a  good  supply  of  wood  on  hand.  I 
shall  move  from  where  I  am,  should  I  ever  get  at  making  hats 
again,  to  a  street  more  convenient  to  my  old  place  of  business. 
You  write  me  that  your  prayers  are  daily  offered  up  to  God 
for  the  salvation  of  my  wife,  children,  and  myself.  Mother,  you 
seem  to  think  we  do  not  pray.  Yes,  we  do ;  and  in  my  present 
situation  it  requires  me  to  double  my  diligence  to  keep  my  head 
above  water.  I  have,  and  always  have  had,  confidence  in  my 
Heavenly  Father,  that  he  would  keep  me  and  protect  me,  and 
in  the  end  save  me,  notwithstanding  my  many,  many  forfeits  of 
his  favor.  I  beg  you  still  to  pray  for  me  and  my  children ;  / 
have  not  a  doubt  your  prayers  will  be  answered.  I  must  now 
close,  and  pray  that  God  may  keep  you  and  father,  and  in  tho 
end  gather  us  all  into  his  bosom,  where  we  shall  have  no  more 
trouble. 

Your  son,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


The  year  1839  was  one  of  much  misery  to  Mr. 
Hawkins  and  his  family.  The  compunctions  of  con- 
science which  he  experienced  during  this  period,  no 
language  of  his  could  describe.  Conscious  of  having 
fallen  from  the  position  he  was  entitled  to  occupy  in 
the  scale  of  moral  being,  the  change  from  his  former 
to  a  new  life,  when  it  did  come,  came  with  power,  and 
was  decided  and  entire. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

"  The  ransomed  drunkard,  once  a  hopeless  slave, 
Snatched  from  a  vicious  life,  an  early  grave, 
Once  more  to  friends,  wife,  children,  home,  restored, 
And  taught  the  way  that  leadeth  to  the  Lord, — 
Shall  keep  thy  memory  treasured  in  his  heart 
Amid  its  holiest  things,  till  life  depart ; 
And  bless  thy  name,  while  lip,  and  eye,  and  breast, 
The  strong  emotions  of  his  soul  attest !  " 

IT  is  not  the  intention  of  the  compiler  of  this  me- 
moir to  give  a  history  of  the  temperance  reformation 
which  began  in  Baltimore  in  1840,  except  so  far  as 
that  history  is  connected  with,  and  illustrated  by,  the 
life  and  labors  of  Mr.  Hawkins  ;  such  a  history  would 
require  a  volume  of  itself.  Besides,  it  would  be  going 
over  ground  with  which  the  public,  through  numerous 
publications,  are  already  familiar. 

The  organization  of  the  Washington  Temperance 
Society  took  place  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  early  in  the 
month  of  April,  1840* 

*  See  Eleventh  Annual  Kcport  of  the  Maryland  State  Temperance 
Society.  By  Christian  Keener.  Baltimore  :  1842. 

Six  individuals,  who  were  in  the  habit  of  associating  together,  were 
seated,  as  usual,  on  Friday  evening  the  second  of  April,  1840,  in  Chase's 
tavern,  in  Liberty  Street,  Baltimore,  where  they  were  accustomed  to  meet 
almost  every  evening,  for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  mutually  all  the  bene- 
fits which  the  conveniences  of  the  establishment  and  the  society  of  each 
other  could  possibly  afford.  These  were  William.  K.  Mitchell,  tailor ;  John 
F.  Hoss,  carpenter  ;  David  Anderson,  blacksmith  ;  George  Steers,  black- 
smith ;  James  McCurley,  coachmaker ;  and  Archibald  Campbell,  silver- 
plater.  A  clergyman  who  was  preaching  in  the  city  at  that  time  had 
6  (61) 


62  LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Mr.   Hawkins  connected   himself  with   the   society 

given  public  notice  that  on  that  evening  he  would  deliver  a  discourse  upon 
the  subject  of  temperance.  Upon  this  lecture  the  conversation  of  our  six 
heroes  presently  turned  ;  whereupon  it  was  determined  that  four  of  them 
should  go  and  hear  it  and  report  accordingly.  After  the  sermon  they 
returned  and  discoursed  on  its  merits  for  some  time ;  when  one  of  the 
company  remarked,  that  "After  all,  temperance  is  a  good  thing-."  —  "Oh," 
said  the  host,  "  they're  all  a  parcel  of  hypocrites."  —  "  Oh,  yes,"  replied 
McCurley,  "  I'll  be  bound  for  you  ;  it's  your  interest  to  cry  them  down, 
anyhow."  —  "I  tell  you  what,  boys,"  says  Steers,  "  let's  form  a  society, 
and  make  Bill  Mitchell  president."  —  "  Agreed,"  cried  they.  The  idea 
seemed  to  take  wonderfully,  and  the  more  they  laughed  and  talked  over 
it,  the  more  they  were  pleased  with  it. 

After  parting  that  night  they  did  not  all  meet  again  until  Sunday; 
when  they  took  a  stroll,  and  between  walking  and  treating  they  managed 
to  arrange  the  whole  matter  to  their  entire  satisfaction.  It  was  agreed 
that  one  of  them  should  draw  up  a  pledge,  and  that  the  whole  party 
should  sign  it  the  next  day.  Accordingly,  on  Monday  morning,  William 
K.  Mitchell  wrote  the  following 

PLEDGE. 

•'  We  whose  names  are  annexed,  desirous  of  forming  a  society  for  our  mutual  ben- 
efit, and  to  guard  against  a  pernicious  practice,  which  is  injurious  to  our  health, 
standing,  and  families,  do  pledge  ourselves  as  gentlemen,  that  we  will  not  drink  any 
spirituous  or  malt  liquors,  wine,  or  cider." 

He  went  with  it,  about  nine  o'clock,  to  Anderson's  house,  and  found 
him  still  in  bed,  sick  from  the  effects  of  his  Sunday  adventure,  He  arose, 
however,  dressed  himself,  and  after  hearing  the  pledge  read,  went  down 
to  his  shop  with  his  friend  for  pen  and  ink;  and  there  did  himself  the 
honor  of  being  the  first  man  who  signed  the  Washington  Pledge.  After 
obtaining  the  names  of  the  remaining  four,  the  worthy  President  finished 
this  noble  achievement  by  adding  his  own.  .On  the  evening  of  that  day, 
they  met  at  the  residence  of  one  of  their  number  and  duly  formed  them- 
selves into  a  society,  by  assigning  to  each  the  following  offices  :  President 
W.  K.  Mitchell ;  Vice  President,  Archibald  Campbell ;  Secretary,  John 
F.  IIoss ;  Treasurer,  James  McCurley ;  Standing  Committee,  George 
Steers  and  David  Anderson. 

Having  thus  summarily  provided  themselves  with  offices,  they  next 
turned  their  attention  to  obtaining  members  and  to  devising  means  to 
defray  the  expenses  of  their  meetings  ;  it  was  therefore  agreed  that  cai-h 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  63 

about  the  14th  of  June,  in  the  same  year.     He  imme- 

man  should  bring  a  man,  and  everyone  should  pay  twenty-five  cents  upon 
becoming  a  member,  and  twelve  and  a  half  cents,  monthly,  thereafter. 

The  next  debate  was  as  to  the  name  they  should  give  to  their  society. 
A  number  were  proposed,  among  them  that  of  Jefferson ;  when  it  was 
finally  agreed  that  the  President  and  Secretary  should  be  a  committee 
to  draft  a  Constitution,  and  select  a  name  ;  which  they  did,  and  gave  to 
the  association  the  name  of  the  WASHINGTON  TEMPERANCE  SOCIETY. 

At  their  second  meeting  they  had  two  new  members ;  after  this  they 
met  for  some  time,  every  week,  at  their  old  rendezvous  in  Liberty  Street ; 
but  the  landlord's  wife  complaining  that  their  company  was  no  particular 
advantage  to  the  house,  the  lady  of  the  President  kindly  offered  them  the 
use  of  one  of  her  own  rooms,  where  they  continued  to  meet  until  their 
numbers  had  increased  so  much  as  to  make  it  necessary  for  them  to  seek 
more  extensive  accommodations.  Their  next  move  was  to  a  carpenter's 
shop  in  Little  Sharp  Street,  where  they  remained  until  some  weeks  after- 
wards, when  they  removed  to  their  present  quarters. 

At  this  time  the  society  had  enlarged  so  considerably  that  it  became 
a  question  how  they  could  employ  their  time  so  as  to  make  their  meetings 
interesting.  Their  worthy  President,  ever  ready  with  expedients,  sug- 
gested that  cacli  member  should  rise  in  his  place  and  give  his  experience; 
and,  by  way  of  commencement,  he  arose  and  told  what  he  had  passed 
through  in  the  last  fifteen  years,  and  the  advantages  which  he  had  derived 
from  signing  the  total-abstinence  pledge.  This  was  the  origin  of  that 
most  excellent  plan,  which  the  Washington  Society  and  all  its  auxiliaries 
have  adopted,  for  giving  interest  and  effect  to  all  their  meetings.  From 
this  time  the  society  increased  very  rapidly.  It  was  proposed  that  they 
should  hold  a  public  experience  meeting ;  and  arrangements  were  made 
for  one  to  be  held  on  the  19th  of  November,  in  the  Masonic  Hall  in  St. 
Paul  Street.  At  this  meeting  Mr.  Mitchell  and  others  related  their  expe- 
rience with  great  effect ;  a  number  of  signers  were  obtained,  and  the  at- 
tention of  the  public  was  attracted  to  the  movements  of  the  society. 

Too  much  praise  cannot  lie  awarded  to  these  men  ;  they  spared  neither 
their  money  nor  their  time  in  carrying  out  the  principles  which  they  had 
espoused.  Many  a  poor  fellow  who  from  the  effects  of  liquor  had  be- 
come a  burthen  to  his  family  and  himself,  was  fed  and  clothed  by  them, 
and  won  by  kindness  to  reform  his  life}  even  more  than  this  ;  they  have 
supported  the  families  of  those  whom  they  had  induced  to  join  with  them, 
until  the  husband  and  father  had  procured  work,  and  was  enabled  to  sup- 
port thrill  with  his  own  hands. 

The  peculiar  characteristics  of  this  great  reform  arc  first,  a  totul-iib- 


64  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

diately  commenced  the  work  of  a  temperance  mission- 

stinence  pledge.  The  idea  of  a  partial  pledge  seems  never  to  have  en- 
tered the  minds  of  these  honest  fellows.  Secondly,  the  telling  to  others 
what  they  know  from  experience,  of  the  evils  of  intemperance,  and  of  the 
good  which  they  feel  to  result  from  entire  abstinence.  They  knew  of  but 
one  way  to  rid  the  world  of  the  evil,  and  that  was,  to  strike  directly  at  its 
root.  They  knew,  too,  if  others  could  know  as  they  did  of  the  suffering 
which  resulted  from  the  custom  of  drinking,  that  they  would  renounce 
forever  this  social  yet  destructive  habit. 

"  Vice  is  a  monster  of  so  frightful  mien, 
As  to  be  hated,  needs  but  to  be  seen."    • 

By  this  reformation,  commencing  as  all  great  reforms,  whether  religious 
or  political,  ever  have,  among  the  people,  a  class  has  been  reached  which 
otherwise  might  never  have  been  affected  by  the  labors  of  those  good 
men  who  had  for  so  many  years  been  engaged  in  diffusing  the  principles 
of  temperance  ;  resulting  as  it  has,  from  a  singular  combination  of  provi- 
dences, it  is  fully  adapted  to  all  the  necessities  of  the  people. 

By  the  Christmas  of  1 840,  the  reform  had  become  so  popular,  that 
thousands  had  flocked  to  its  standard,  and  enrolled  themselves  as  the 
friends  of  temperance.  But  a  new  feature  was  about  to  be  added  to  the 
character  of  these  movements,  which  was  to  complete  this  already  won- 
derful system. 

A  merchant  of  Baltimore,  who  was  a  friend  to  the  cause,  was  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  and  happened  to  bo  present  atone  of  the  simultaneous 
meetings  which  were  held  in  that  city ;  being  requested,  he  gave  a  short 
account  of  the  history  of  the  Washington  Society,  and  temperance  at 
home.  After  the  meeting,  while  in  conversation  with  Dr.  Reese  of  that 
city,  the  idea  was  suggested  of  procuring  some  of  the  "  Washington " 
men  to  come  on  to  New  York,  and  tell  their  experience.  After  his  return 
to  Baltimore,  this  gentleman  learned  that  such  a  delegation  could  be  had, 
and  wrote  immediately,  through  Dr.  Reese,  to  the  New- York  City  Society, 
a  proposal  to  send  five  men,  who  should  engage  to  hold  experience  meetings 
twice  every  day  for  one  week,  in  such  places  as  the  friends  there  might 
select,  if  privilege  were  given  to  draw  on  them  for  a  sum  sufficient  to  de- 
fray their  expenses.  This  letter  was  promptly  responded  to,  and  in  one 
week,  on  Monday  the  22nd  of  March,  Messrs.  Hawkins,  Pollard,  Shaw, 
and  Casey,  took  passage  in  the  cars  for  New  York,  and  on  the  next 
morning  were  followed  by  Mr.  Mitchell. 

Their  first  meeting  in  New  York  was  held  on  Tuesday  evening,  in  the 
M.  E.  Church,  Green  Street;   being  the  first  Washington  missionary 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  65 

ary  among  his  old  companions,  who  were  addicted  to 
intemperate  habits.  He  was  punctual  in  his  attend- 
ance at  the  weekly  meetings  of  the  society,  and  did  all 
in  his  power  to  add  interest  to  them  by  detailing  his 
own  past,  sad  experience,  and  in  encouraging  others. 

He  spoke  at  several  public  meetings,  and  in  the 
winter  succeeding  his  reformation,  on  the  25th  of 
February,  he  attended  the  anniversary  of  the  Mary- 
land State  Temperance  Society,  at  Annapolis,  and 
related  his  experience  there,  before  the  members  of 
the  State  Legislature,  with  great  power  and  effect. 
The  singleness  of  his  aim  and  his  simplicity  of  manner 
seemed  to  carry  every  heart  with  him. 

The  following  communication  from  Christian  Keener, 
whose  name  cannot  be  mentioned  in  connection  with 
temperance  without  love  and  veneration,  conveys  a 
very  vivid  idea  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  visit  to  Annapolis. 
"  The  House,  it  is  said,  was  dissolved  in  tears." 

BALTIMORE,  March  14,  1841. 

REV.  J.  MAKSII, —  *  *  *  We  held  our  annual  State  meet- 
meeting  ever  held  in  the  United  States.  This  meeting  was  a  type  of  that 
success  which  was  ever  to  accompany  this  new  system  of  temperance. 
The  New- York  Commercial  Advertiser,  speaking  of  it  next  morning,  says  : 
"During  the  first  speech,  a  young  man  rose  in  the  gallery,  and  though 
intoxicated,  hogged  to  know  if  there  was  hope  for  him,  declaring  his  readi- 
ness to  hind  himself,  from  that  hour,  to  drink  no  more.  He  was  invited 
to  come  down  and  siun  the.  pledge,  which  he  did  forthwith,  in  the  presence 
of  the  audience,  under  deep  emotion,  which  seemed  to  bo  contagious,  for 
others  followed  ;  :uid  during  cadi  of  the  speeches,  they  continued  to  come 
forward  and  sign,  until  more  than  a  hundred  pledges  were  obtained,  a 
large  proportion  of  which  were  from  intemperate  persons,  some  of  whom 
were  old  and  grayheaded.  Such  a  scene  as  was  beheld  at  the  Secretary's 
table  while  they  were  signing,  and  the  unaH'ectcd  tears  that  were  (lowing, 
und  the  cordial  greeting  of  the  recruits  by  the  Baltimore  delegates,  was 
never  before  witnessed  in  New  York." 
6* 


66  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

ing  at  Annapolis,  on  Thursday,  the  25th  ult.,  and  had  a  Mr, 
Hawkins,  a  member  of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society 
with  us.  He  commenced  his  speech  by  letting  them  know  that 
he  stood  before  them  a  reformed  drunkard,  less  than  twelve 
months  ago  taken  almost  out  of  the  gutter ;  and  now  in  the 
Senate  chamber  of  his  native  State,  addressing  hundreds  of 
the  best  informed  and  most  intelligent  of  men  and  women,  and 
they  listening  with  almost  breathless,  I  was  going  to  say,  but 
certainly  tearful,  attention.  The  circumstances  had  an  almost 
overpowering  effect  on  his  own  feelings  and  those  of  his  audi- 
ence. He  is  a  man  of  plain,  good  common  sense,  with  a  sin- 
cerity about  him,  an  easy  way  of  expressing  himself,  that  every 
word  told  like  a  point-blank  shot.  His  was  the  eloquence  of 
the  heart ;  no  effort  at  display  ;  indeed,  none  is  needed  where 
all  is  honesty  and  sincerity. 

The  great  advantage  of  the  Washington  Temperance  So- 
ciety has  been  this  ;  they  have  reached  hundreds  of  men  that 
would  not  come  out  to  our  churches,  nor  even  temperance  meet- 
ings ;  they  go  to  their  old  companions  and  drag  them,  not  by 
force,  but  by  friendly  considerations  of  duty,  and  a  sense  of 
self-respect,  into  their  ranks,  and  watch  over  them  with  the 
solicitude  of  friends  and  brothers.  This  work  can.  must,  and 
will  go  on. 

Believe  me  to  be, 

Your  friend  and  fellow-laborer, 

CHRISTIAN   KEENER. 

These  personal  efforts  of  the  members  were  eminently 
blessed,  and  the  reformation  spread  through  the  city 
with  amazing  rapidity.  In  less  than  one  year  over  one 
thousand  drunkards  were  reformed.*  The  Rev.  Dr. 
John  Marsh,  Editor  of  the  American  Temperance 
Union,  New  York,  was  early  advised  of  these  move- 

*  See  John  Zug's  "  Account  of  the  Foundation,  Progress,  and  Prin- 
ciples of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society." 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  67 

ments  by  John  Zug,  Esq.,  in  a  letter  dated  Baltimore, 
December  12th,  1840,  which  we  give  in  a  note.* 

BALTIMORE,  Dec.  12, 1840. 
*  To  the  Editor  of  the  Journal  of  the  A.  T.  U. 

DEAR  SIR,  —  In  a  communication  which  I  addressed  you  some 
months  since,  from  Carlisle,  Pa.  (my  former  residence),  I  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  giving  you  an  account  of  the  recent  temperance  movement  in  that 
place. 

Since  my  coming  to  Baltimore,  I  have  interested  myself  in  ascertain- 
ing the  state  of  things  here  on  that  subject,  in  order  that  I  might  coop- 
erate with  the  friends  of  the  cause  in  whatever  way  my  services  might  be 
of  advantage.  There  is  in  this  city  a  society  of  recent  origin,  the  begin- 
ning, progress,  operations,  and  prosperity  of  which  will,  I  think,  be  inter- 
esting to  the  numerous  readers  of  your  journal.  I  therefore  give  you  the 
following  sketch. 

The  association  to  which  I  refer  is  called  the  "  Washington  Temper- 
ance Society,"  and  is  based  on  the  principle  of  total  abstinence  from  all 
that  can  intoxicate.  Some  time  in  April  last,  about  half  a  dozen  drink- 
ing characters  (most  if  not  all  of  whom  were  noted  drunkards,  and  had 
been  so  for  years),  while  sitting  in  a  tavern  in  this  city,  conceived  the 
idea,  and  formed  the  resolution,  that  they  would  cease  to  use  intoxicating 
liquor  from  that  time  forth.  Satisfied  that  its  use  was  ruining  their  health, 
character,  fortunes,  and  comfort,  and  the  peace  and  happiness  of  their 
families,  —  in  short,  "  evil,  only  evil,  and  that  continually,"  —  and  that 
they  could  in  no  way  consult  their  own  interests  better  than  by  resolving 
in  their  own  minds,  and  pledging  themselves  to  each  other,  to  abstain  for- 
ever after  from  touching,  tasting,  or  handling  the  unclean  thing. 

Their  resolution  was  no  sooner  formed  than  carried  into  execution.  In 
a  few  days  a  constitution  was  adopted  with  a  total-abstinence  pledge,  and 
they  all  signed  it.  These  half  a  dozen  men  immediately  interested  them- 
selves to  persuade  their  old  bottle-companions  to  unite  with  them,  and 
they  in  a  short  time  numbered  nearly  one  hundred  members,  a  majority 
of  whom  were  reformed  drunkards.  By  their  unprecedented  exertions 
from  the  beginning,  they  have  been  growing  in  numbers,  extending  their 
influence,  and  increasing  in  interest,  until  now  they  number  about  three 
hundred  members,  upwards  of  two  hundred  of  whom  are  reformed  drunkards 
— reformed,  too,  within  the  last  eight  months.  Many  of  these  had  been 
drunkards  of  many  years'  standing,  —  notorious  for  their  dissipation. 
Indeed,  the  society  lins  done  wonders  in  the  reformation  of  scores  whoso 
friends  and  the  community  had  despaired  of  long  since. 

The  interest  connected  with  this  society  is  maintained  by  the  coutiuued 


68  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Early  in  March,  1841,  it  was  determined  to  send  for 

active  exertions  of  its  members,  the  peculiar  character  of  their  operations, 
and  the  frequency  of  their  meetings.  The  whole  society  is  considered  a 
"  grand  committee  of  the  whole,"  each  member  exerting  himself,  from 
week  to  week,  and  from  day  to  day,  as  far  as  possible,  to  persuade  his 
friends  to  adopt  the  only  safe  course,  total  abstinence  ;  or  at  least  to  ac- 
company him  to  the  next  meeting  of  the  "  Washington  Temperance  Soci- 
ety." It  is  a  motto  of  their  energetic  and  worthy  President  (a  drinking 
man  of  fifteen  years'  standing,  and  who  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
society),  in  urging  the  attendance  of  the  members  at  the  stated  meetings, 
"  Let  every  man  be  present,  and  every  man  bring  with  him  a  man." 

They  have  rented  a  public  hall  in  which  they  meet  every  Monday  night. 
At  these  stated  weekly  meetings,  after  their  regular  business  is  transacted, 
the  several  members  rise  promiscuously  and  state  their  temperance  expe- 
rience for  each  other's  warning,  instruction,  and  encouragement.  After 
this,  any  persons  present  wishing  to  unite  with  them  are  invited  for- 
ward to  sign  the  Constitution  and  Pledge.  Those  who  have  never  at- 
tended any  meetings  of  the  kind  can  hardly  conceive  how  thrillingly  in- 
teresting they  are.  To  hear  the  tales  of  degradation,  woe,  and  crime, 
which  some  describe  as  the  condition  to  which  they  had  reduced  them- 
selves by  strong  drink,  is  enough  to  melt  the  heart  of  stone.  And,  again, 
to  hear  these  regenerated  men  contrasting  the  health,  comfort,  prosperity, 
and  happiness  which  now  are  shed  around  them,  with  their  former  lives, 
characters,  and  wants,  and  the  wretchedness  they  had  brought  upon  their 
families,  would  make  the  most  insensible  heart  leap  for  joy. 

In  addition  to  these  stated  weekly  meetings,  they  have  also  been  hold- 
ing, of  late,  one  or  more  public  meetings  every  month,  to  which  the 
friends  of  temperance  of  both  sexes  are  invited.  These  meetings  have 
been  uncommonly  well  attended,  and  full  of  interest.  After  the  general 
exercises  of  an  address  or  two,  the  meetings  have  been  continued  by  the 
members  (who  have  experienced  the  ills  of  intemperance,  and  who  now 
reap  the  benefit  of  abstinence),  stating  frankly  to  the  public  their  former 
habits,  and  their  present  condition  and  prospects.  Most  of  those  who 
have  thus  spoken,  are  men  who  had  never,  on  any  occasion,  spoken  in 
public  before.  But  the  strains  of  eloquence  which  flowed  from  their  hearts 
as  well  as  from  their  mouths,  equally  astonished  the  minds,  and  moved 
the  hearts  of  the  congregations.  Some  of  the  most  affecting  speeches  to 
which  I  have  ever  listened,  have  been  these  simple,  unaffected  narratives 
of  men  who  spoke  from  their  own  experience.  If  I  had  time  and  space, 
I  might  repeat  to  you  some  of  these  experiences  of  these  Washington 
temperance  men.  Indeed,  I  can  not  deny  myself  the  pleasure  of  men- 


LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  69 

a  delegation  of  these  Baltimore  reformers,  to  come  to 
New  York,  and  add  the  enthusiasm  of  their  addresses 
to  the  interest  which  was  then  but  slightly  awakened. 
Mr.  Hawkins  accordingly  proceeded  to  New  York,  with 
four  or  five  companions,  and  commenced  a  series  of 
public  meetings.  The  first  meeting  was  held  in  the 
Methodist  Church  in  Green  Street,  on  Tuesday  even- 
ing, the  23d  of  March,  1841,  Anson  G.  Phelps,  Esq., 
presiding.  Thousands  flocked  to  their  meetings,  and 
in  the  space  of  several  weeks  hundreds  of  the  most 
debased  drunkards  were  reformed,  and  an  impulse 
given  to  the  cause  there  which  was  not  likely  to  die 
soon. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  John  Marsh  has  preserved  a  circum- 
stantial account  of  these  extraordinary  meetings.  This 
account  is  published  in  the  April  number  of  the  Jour- 
nal  for  1841. 

"  For  the  past  few  days,"  he  says,  "  our  city  has  been  the 
seat  of  an  exceedingly  interesting  temperance  movement.  Feel- 
ing deeply  for  a  sister  city,  suffering  under  the  ravages  of  in- 
temperance, the  Washington  Temperance  Society  of  Baltimore, 

tioning  one  or  two  cases,  at  least.  One  of  these  men  assured  me  that  he 
had  wasted,  within  the  last  fifteen  years,  the  round  sum  of  fifteen  thousand 
dollars  ;  not  in  gambling,  —  not  in  general  extravagance  and  dissipation, 
but  purely  for  drink,  — declaring  that  he  had  laid  that  amount  upon  the 
counters  of  the  taverns  and  grog-shops  of  this  city,  for  poison  with 
which  to  destroy  himself  and  his  friends. 

In  conclusion,  allow  me  to  say,  this  society  is  composed  of  men  of  all 
classes  and  professions.  It  is  one  in  which  men  of  all  political  parties, 
and  religious  opinions,  unite  and  act  in  harmony.  Their  numbers  are 
growing  weekly,  and  I  should  not  be  surprised  if  they  numbered  a  thou- 
sand before  another  twelvemonth  rolls  around. 

Very  respectfully,  yours  &c., 

JOHN  Zuo. 


70  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

consisting  now  of  more  than  one  thousand  reformed  drunkards, 
made  an  offer  to  the  New- York  City  Temperance  Society  of  a 
delegation,  to  state  to  its  citizens  what  had  been  effected  in 
Baltimore.  The  offer  was  gladly  accepted,  and  on  Tuesday 
they  came  to  our  city  and  held  their  first  meeting  in  the  Meth- 
odist church  in  Green  Street.  Although  the  weather  was  un- 
favorable through  the  day,  yet  the  house  was  well  filled  with  an 
audience  drawn  together  by  great  curiosity  to  see  this  new  thing. 
The  meetings  have  been  continued  afternoons  and  evenings,  until 
the  churches  have  not  been  able  to  hold  the  people  who  have 
pressed  to  them.  So  great  was  the  desire  to  hear  the  delegates 
that  it  was  thought  best  on  Saturday  afternoon  to  hold  a  meet- 
ing in  the  Park.  More  than  three  thousand  people  gathered 
around  the  platform  and  on  the  steps  of  the  City  Hall,  all  lis- 
tening with  deep  interest  to  hear  their  statements  and  appeals, 
and  cheering  them  onward  in  their  glorious  career.  On  Friday 
afternoon  a  Washington  Temperance  Society  was  formed  in 
New  York.  A  large  number  of  intemperate  men  have  been 
brought  out  to  sign  the  total-abstinence  pledge,  besides  nearly 
two  thousand  of  our  fellow  citizens  who  had  never  before  given 
their  names.  The  meetings  still  continue  as  our  Journal  goes 
to  press.  For  the  gratification  of  our  readers  we  have  taken 
some  notes  at  a  few  of  these  meetings,  and  give  them  the  sub- 
stance of  what  has  been  said.  At  the  first  meeting  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins first  took  the  stand.  Mr.  Hawkins  said  he  stood  there  a 
reformed  drunkard.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  was  appren- 
ticed to  a  hatter  for  eight  years.  It  was  then  customary  to 
teach  the  rising  generation  to  drink,  and  he  contracted  a  habit 
of  daily  drinking.  *  *  *  He  afterwards  went  to  the  West, 
where  he  gave  way  to  dissipation ;  a  course  commenced  on 
wine  and  beer  and  cider.  Though  he  had  been  educated  by 
a  minister  of  the  gospel,  he  never  once  thought  he  could  be  a 
drunkard,  yet  the  use  of  ardent  spirit  crept  upon  him  and  slew 
him.  No  tongue  could  tell  the  degradation  and  misery  to  which 
he  had  been  reduced.  Last  April  he  woke  up  for  the  first 


LIFE   OF    JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  71 

time  to  a  sense  of  his  dreadful  condition ;  he  discovered  that 
his  health  was  gone,  his  property  gone,  his  peace  gone ;  the 
peace  of  his  family  and  of  an  aged  and  beloved  mother  was 
gone.  'Never,'  said  he,  'shall  I  forget  the  12th  of  June 
last.  The  first  two  weeks  in  June  I  averaged — it  is  a  cross 
to  acknowledge  it  —  as  much  as  a  quart  and  a  pint  a  day.  That 
morning  I  was  miserable  beyond  conception,  and  was  hesitating 
whether  to  live  or  die.  My  little  daughter  came  to  my  bed 
and  said,  "  I  hope  you  won't  send  me  for  any  whisky  to-day." 
I  told  her  to  go  out  of  the  room.  She  went,  weeping.  I 
wounded  her  sorely,  though  I  had  made  up  my  mind  I  would 
drink  no  more.  I  suffered  all  the  horrors  of  the  pit  that  day. 
But  my  wife  supported  me.  She  said,  "  Hold  on  —  hold  on." 
Next  day  I  felt  better.  Monday  I  wanted  to  go  down  and  see 
my  old  associates  who  had  joined  the  Washington  Society.  I 
went  and  signed.  I  felt  like  a  freeman.  What  was  I  now  to 
do  to  regain  my  character  ?  My  friends  took  me  by  the  hand. 
They  encouraged  me ;  they  did  right.  If  there  is  a  man  on 
earth  who  deserves  the  sympathy  of  the  world  it  is  the  poor 
drunkard  ;  he  is  poisoned,  degraded,  cast  out,  knows  not  what 
to  do,  and  must  be  helped  or  he  is  lost.  We  have  saved  more 
than  a  thousand  drunkards  in  Baltimore.'  Mr.  II.  said  if 
time  permitted  he  could  give  a  history  of  his  whole  course. 
He  became  a  drunkard  on  an  article  which  the  law  makes 
right.  '  What,'  said  he,  '  should  we  do  with  a  man  who  sold 
bad  meat  in  the  market ;  or  a  baker,  dishonest  in  his  bread  ? 
Put  him  in  the  penitentiary.  The  law  allows  a  man  to  rectify 
(his  liquor).  What  docs  he  do?  Reduces  his  liquor  so  that  a 
drunkard  would  not  touch  it.  If  a  liquor  will  not  intoxicate,  it 
is  bad  liquor ;  and  when  he  gets  it  so  low  that  it  is  just  good 
for  nothing,  then  he  puts  in  his  poisonous  drugs  that  destroy 
men.  This  is  rectifying  by  law.  I  can  see  the  distiller  in  his 
distillery,  sitting  in  his  comfortable  chair,  watching  his  distilled 
damnation  as  it  oozes  out  of  his  pipe.  As  it  goes  into  the 
world  will  it  fill  my  pockets  ?  will  it  make  my  family  comforta- 


72  LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.  HAWKINS. 

ble  ?  Is  there  a  being  on  earth  whom  it  will  bless  ?  No,  he 
knows  there  is  not  one.  I  have  suffered  from  it  ten  thousand 
deaths.  They  have  trusted  me  for  whisky  when  they  would 
not  trust  me  for  bread.  Oh,  if  hell  could  be  opened  and  the 
distiller  and  vender  could  see  the  miserable  lost  wretches  there, 
they  would  see  there  was  no  blessing  in  their  cup.  I  feel  for 
drunkards ;  I  want  them  to  come  and  sign  the  pledge  and  be 
saved.' " 

At  this  point  in  the  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  a  scene 
occurred  which  possessed  many  of  the  elements  of  true 
moral  sublimity.  It  communicated  a  thrill  of  excessive 
joy  to  the  hundreds  there  assembled,  which  has  never 
been  forgotten.  An  impulse  was  then  given  to  the 
reform,  which  was  soon  to  sweep  over  the  world  with 
increasing  and  resistless  power. 

Out  of  the  depths  of  that  dense  crowd  of  human 
beings  came  a  faltering  voice  from  the  gallery,  ex- 
claiming, «  Can  I  be  saved  ?  I  am  a  poor  drunkard.  I 
would  give  the  world  if  I  was  as  you.  Is  there  any 
hope  for  me?  "  —  «  Yes,  there  is,  my  friend,"  answered 
Mr.  Hawkins ;  «  come  down  and  sign  the  pledge,  and 
you  will  be  a  man.  Come  down,  and  I  will  meet  you, 
and  we  will  take  you  by  the  hand."  "  Every  eye,"  says 
one  who  witnessed  the  scene,  "  was  fixed  upon  the  two 
speakers,  and  silence  prevailed.  Many  a  silent  prayer 
ascended  for  the  poor  man,  and  many  a  heart  beat  with 
breathless  anxiety.  Summoning  up  resolution,  the 
man  started  for  the  stairs.  Your  father,"  continues  the 
writer,  «  sprang  from  the  stand,  and,  followed  by  others, 
met  the  poor  man  literally  half  way,  escorted  him  to 
the  desk,  and  guided  his  hand  as  he  signed  his  name ; 
and  then  such  a  shout  broke  forth  from  the  friends  of 
temperance  as  must  have  reached  the  angels  above. 


,  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  73 

Others  followed  and  signed  the  pledge,  and  then  com- 
menced the  good  work  in  the  city  of  New  York.  As 
for  myself,  my  feelings  were  much  excited,  and  the 
scene  has  fastened  itself  indelibly  upon  my  memory. 
I  looked  around  for  the  scoffers,  but  they  were  few,  and 
more  solemnity  have  I  seldom  seen  in  any  gathering, 
except  it  may  be  at  a  funeral."  * 

"  The  victory,"  says  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Marsh,  "  was 
now  gained.  The  work  of  redemption  among  poor 
drunkards  commenced.  Another  uttered  forth  his  feel- 
ings from  the  gallery,  and  was  led  to  come  down  and 
sign  the  pledge.  Five  or  six  others  of  this  miserable 
class  followed,  and  some  thirty  or  forty  others,  well- 
known  as  hard  drinkers  and  drunkards.  The  anima- 
tion and  zeal  imparted  to  the  speakers  became 
great."  f 

Mr.  Hawkins  continued :  "  Is  there  a  man,"  as  the 
poor  fellow  signed  the  pledge,  "  who  does  not  rejoice  in 
this  ?  What  does  not  all  this  promise  to  him  and  his 
family,  if  he  has  one  ?  J  In  Baltimore,  we  obtained  nine- 
ty-six in  one  night.  The  axe  is  laid  at  the  root  of  the 
tree.  Numerous  families  among  us  are  rejoicing.  One 
man,  who,  last  February,  had  not  for  himself  and  family 
the  least  comfort,  scarce  a  rag  to  clothe  him,  owned  in 
November  a  small  house,  and  had  plenty  of  comforts. 
Little  children  are  rejoicing.  A  little  boy,  in  going  down 
OIK-  of  our  streets,  was  hailed  by  another,  '  Ho,  you've 


*  Rev.  ().  W.  Morris'  letter  to  Rev.  Wm.  G.  Hawkins,  dated  Institu- 
tion of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  New  York,  Oct.  25th,  1858. 

t  See  Journal,  p.  50,  1841. 

\  Tliis  man  was  completely  reformed,  and  restored  to  his  family  and 
society,  and  became  the  first  President  of  the  New- York  Washington 
'IVmjxTancc  Society. 


74  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

got  a  new  pair  of  shoes.' — '  Yes,'  said  the  boy,  '  Father 
has  joined  the  Washington  Temperance  Society.'  On 
the  5th  of  April  we  are  going  to  finish  up  the  work  in 
our  city,  and  put  an  end  to  the  traffic.  We  shall  have 
fifteen  thousand  men  in  procession.  God  is  on  our 
side,  and  he  who  puts  his  trust  in  God  cannot  fail." 

The  modesty  and  earnestness  of  Mr.  Hawkins  in  his 
address,  was  a  subject  of  special  remark  in  the  public 
journals  of  the  day. 

Mr.  Hawkins  and  his  missionary  brethren  continued 
their  labors  in  New  York  for  three  weeks,  addressing 
crowded  audiences  almost  every  night.  He  did  not, 
however,  intermit  his  labors  during  the  day,  but  sought 
out  those  unfortunate  men  who  had  been  induced  to 
visit  their  meetings,  and  commence  their  reformation. 
He  administered  what  consolation  he  could,  and  en- 
couraged them  to  press  onward  in  the  work  of  amend- 
ment. In  some  instances,  husbands  were  found  sepa- 
rated from  their  wives  and  children.  So  great  was  the 
confidence  inspired  by  Mr.  Hawkins  in  these  once 
wretched  men,  that  he  was  solicited  to  act  as  mediator 
between  the  wife  and  husband,  to  effect  their  reunion, 
and  aid  in  restoring  them  to  their  former  social  happi- 
ness. Mr.  Hawkins  took  so  deep  an  interest  in  such 
cases,  that  he  visited  different  cities  to  search  out  the 
wife  who  had  been  compelled  to  desert  her  once  happy 
home. 

We  select  one  among  the  many  instances  that  came 
to  his  knowledge.  Among  the  miserable  inebriates 
snatched,  as  thousands  were,  from  the  depths  of  degra- 
dation and  wretchedness,  was  James  McC ;  once 

in  the  enjoyment  of  the  society  of  a  loved  partner.  The 
Fiend  of  inebriation  had  entered  their  once  happy 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  75 

home,  and  drove  from  his  bosom  his  companion,  the 
sharer  of  his  joys  and  sorrows.  To  escape  the  miser- 
ies of  her  situation  and  to  save  her  scattered  offspring, 
she  had  gone  to  a  distant  city  in  search  of  employ- 
ment, to  procure  the  means  for  her  support.  This  was 
in  1840.  Mr.  Hawkins  learned  these  unhappy  circum- 
stances from  the  now  rescued  man,  and  advising  him 
to  industrious  habits,  set  himself  immediately  about 
the  restoration  of  the  scattered  family  to  the  enjoy- 
ments of  home.  The  wife  had  left  her  husband  in 
utter  hopelessness  of  ever  witnessing  his  reformation ; 
dark  despair  seemed  to  have  thrown  its  pall  over  her 
heart. 

It  was  in  this  state  of  feeling  that  Mr.  Hawkins 

found  her  in  the  city  of  B ,  toiling  at  some  menial 

service  for  the  loved  ones  at  her  side.  The  history  of 
her  husband's  reformation  was  joyous  news,  told  to  her 
by  a  heart  that  yearned  over  her  with  compassionate 
sorrow.  She  believed  his  words,  and  consented  to  re- 
turn to  the  deserted  home,  and  to  her  renovated  hus- 
band. Oh,  who  can  tell  the  joy  of  such  a  meeting, 
and  the  emotions  of  pleasure  which  must  have  thrilled 
the  bosom  of  their  benefactor!  He  left  them,  but  not 
to  forget  them  ;  this  he  never  did.  He  lived  to  witness 
their  restoration  to  social  happiness,  to  society,  arid  to 
the  church ;  the  father  walking  in  company  with  his 
family,  Sabbath  after  Sabbath,  to  the  sacred  portals  of 
God's  house.  As  years  rolled  on,  he  continued  to  pros- 
per in  business,  and  there  were  added  to  his  circle  of 
loved  onr.s.  two  babes,  one  of  whom  was  called  Han- 
nah II;i\vki)is,  and  the  son,  John  Hawkins.  Could  tlfey 
nave  given  him  more  gratifying  tokens  of  their  love 
:«n«l  graiitiuic  ?  Mr.  Hawkins  enjoyed  the  fruit  of  his 


76  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

labor  before  he  passed  to  his  reward  on  high.  On  his 
return  from  Vermont  in  July  last  (1858),  he  stopped 
for  a  night  and  a  day  in  the  city  of  New  York.  On 
the  morning  after  his  arrival,  he  proceeded  with  his 
wife  and  daughter  Hannah  to  the  residence  of  Mr. 

James  McC ,  and  had  the  pleasure  of  dining  with 

them.  Little  did  they  think  that  they  should  see  his 
face  no  more. 

During  the  stay  of  Mr/Hawkins  and  his  companions 
in  New  York,  the  interest  in  the  meetings  was  una- 
bated ;  over  two  thousand  five  hundred  were  induced 
to  sign  the  pledge,  many  of  whom  were  confirmed 
drunkards.  An  impulse  was  given  to  the  cause  which 
soon  spread  to  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  invitations 
for  the  services  of  these  novel  reformers  came  from  the 
North,  South,  East,  and  West.  These  labors  over, 
Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to  Baltimore,  to  be  present  at 
the  Anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the  Washington 
Temperance  Society,  to  take  place  on  the  5th  of  April. 
On  this  occasion,  six  thousand  individuals  walked  in 
procession  with  banners  and  music.  This  was  indeed 
a  great  triumph  for  the  cause  of  temperance  in  Balti- 
more. It  was  said  that  during  six  months  of  1841, 
the  whisky  inspections  for  the  city  of  Baltimore  alone 
had  fallen  short  of  those  of  the  preceding  six  months 
in  1840,  by  four  hundred  and  five  thousand,  five  hun- 
dred and  eighty-two  gallons,  being  a  decrease  of 
twenty-five  per  cent.  The  number  of  licenses  granted 
in  1841  for  the  same  place,  was  less  than  that  of  the 
former  year  by  one  hundred  and  sixty-six. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

"  And  on,  and  on,  a  swelling  host 

Of  temperance  men,  we  come, 
Contemning  and  defying  all 

The  powers  and  priests  of  rum ; 
A  host  redeemed,  who've  drawn  the  sword, 

And  sharpened  up  its  edge, 
And  hewn  our  way,  through  hostile  ranks, 

To  the  teetotal  pledge." 

MR.  Hawkins  remained  but  a  few  days  in  Baltin 
and  then,  in  company  with  Mr.  Wright,  proceeded  to 
Boston,  where  they  had  been  invited  to  spend  some 
time,  while  in  the  city  of  New  York.*  His  journal  of 
his  visits  to  various  parts  of  the  United  States  com- 
mences with  this  visit  to  Boston.  We  shall  have  occa- 
sion to  make  frequent  and  copious  extracts  from  it. 

These  extraordinary  temperance  movements  which 
were  in  progress  in  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  and  New 
York  speedily  reached  the  city  of  Boston.  Extracts 
from  the  daily  journals  of  New  York  appeared  in  the. 
Boston  papers,  particularly  the  Boston  Mercantile  Jour- 
nal, a  paper  of  great  respectability  and  influence.  The 
accounts  published  in  this  journal  were  always  wHl 
written,  and  commanded  the  serious  attention  of  the 
public.  As  early  as  March  22d,  1841,  attention  was 
called  to  the  wonderful  reformatory  movements  in  the 
Cities  already  alluded  to,  the  agencies  employed,  and 

,,iui,  Annual  Kqiurt,  liy  Christian  Keener,  1842. 

:*  (77) 


78  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

the  rapid  progress   already  made.*      The    Rev.  John 

*  (FROM  THE  BOSTON  MERCANTILE  JOURNAL.) 

It  is  stated  that  four  hundred  persons  have  joined  the  temperance  so- 
cieties in  the  city  and  county  of  Philadelphia  within  the  last  three  months. 
The  whole  numher  belonging  to  the  societies  is  about  seventeen  thousand. 
In  the  city  of  Baltimore  the  cause  of  Temperance  has  progressed  won- 
derfully. Within  a  few  months  more  than  thirteen  hundred  reformed 
inebriates  have  subscribed  the  total-abstinence  pledge,  among  whom  were 
great  numbers  of  those  whose  condition  was  most  debased  and  hopeless. 
In  order  to  interest  a  similar  class  of  our  population  in  the  great  work  of 
reform,  and  also  venders  of  strong  liquors,  and  drinkers  of  every  descrip- 
tion, the  New- York  City  Temperance  Society  have  made  arrangements 
to  receive  a  deputation  of  five  reformed  drunkards,  from  the  city  of  Bal- 
timore, who  have  volunteered  to  visit  this  city  for  the  purpose  of  address- 
ing public  meetings. — March,  22,  1841. 

The  following  interesting  article  from  the  N.-Y.  Commercial  of  yesterday 
will  be  read  with  great  pleasure  by  all  who  wish  well  to  the  Temperance 
Keform.  "  Last  evening  an  overwhelming  meeting  was  held  at  the  Method- 
ist Episcopal  Church  in  Green  Street.  Addresses  were  made  by  Messrs. 
Hawkins,  Casey,  Shaw,  and  Pollard,  delegates  from  the  Washington 
Temperance  Society  of  Baltimore,  and  by  Captain  Wisdom  of  this  city. 
These  gentlemen  have  all  been  reclaimed  from  intemperance  within  a 
short  time,  and  the  delegation  from  Baltimore  declare  themselves  to  be 
'reformed  drunkards.'  The  speakers  are  all  men  of  strong  sense,  and 
some  of  them  truly  eloquent,  though  at  this  meeting  they  simply  stated 
their  experience,  and  urged  upon  others  to  share  the  benefits  they  have 
received  from  abandoning  the  use  of  intoxicating  drinks ;  still  it  was  done 
in  a  style  at  once  forcible  and  pathetic,  the  effect  of  which  upon  the  large 
audience  was  astonishing.  During  the  first  speech  a  young  man  rose  in 
the  gallery,  and  though  intoxicated,  begged  God  to  know  whether  there 
was  hope  for  him,  declaring  his  readiness  to  bind  himself  from  that  hour 
to  drink  no  more.  He  was  invited  to  come  down  -and  sign  the  pledge, 
which  he  did  forthwith  in  the  presence  of  the  audience,  under  deep  emo- 
tion, which  seemed  to  be  contagious,  for  others  followed,  and  during  each 
of  the  speeches  they  continued  to  come  forward  and  sign,  until  more  than 
a  hundred  pledges  were  obtained,  a  large  proportion  of  which  were  from 
intemperate  persons,  some  of  whom  were  old  and  gray  headed.  Such  a 
scene  as  was  beheld  at  the  Secretary's  table  while  they  were  signing  —  the 
unaffected  tears  that  were  flowing,  and  the  cordial  greeting  of  the  recruits 
by  the  Baltimore  delegates  —  was  never  before  witnessed  in  New  York- 
This  afternoon  at  the  Methodist  church  in  Duane  Street,  and  this  evening 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  79 

Marsh,  D.D.,  considered  the  subject  of  such  surpassing 

at  the  Presbyterian  church  in  Eivingstpn  Street,  similar  meetings  are  to 
be  held ;  and  Mr.  Mitchell,  the  President  of  the  Washington  Temperance 
Society  of  Baltimore,  will  address  both  meetings,  he  having  joined  the 
delegation  last  night,  and  will  attend  the  subsequent  meetings  during  the 
week,  in  company  with  his  colleagues.  A  class  of  our  population  who 
have  been  heretofore  inaccessible  by  temperance  efforts  it  is  believed  will 
now  be  reached  by  this  new  and  attractive  measure  of  employing  reformed 
drunkards  in  this  agency."  —  March  25, 1841. 

NEW  YORK,  March  26, 1841. 

JOHN  S.  SLEEPER:  Dear  Sir,  —  We  have  the  greatest  movement 
here  on  the  subject  of  temperance  that  we  have  ever  witnessed.  The  del- 
egation of  the  Baltimore  Washington  Temperance  Society,  now  embracing 
more  than  one  thousand  reformed  drunkards,  have  been  addressing  our 
citizens  in  several  successive  meetings,  with  a  power  and  eloquence  seldom 
known  on  any  occasion.  The  houses  will  not  hold  the  people  that  flock 
to  hear  them. 

The  subject  of  the  addresses  is  their  own  experience  in  the  path  of  the 
drunkard,  and  the  wishes  of  the  rumseller,  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years, 
and  their  happiness,  health,  and  prosperity  under  the  sway  of  total  absti- 
nence. It  astonishes  our  community  to  see  men  once  so  degraded  now 
like  other  men,  appearing  indeed  as  if  they  had  always  been  temperate 
kind  husbands  and  fathers,  and  useful  citizens.  We  ask,  as  we  mingle 
with  them,  can  it  be  you  were  ever  the  fiends  and  brutes  you  say  you 
were?  and  can  men  in  a  Christian  land  ever  be  permittted  to  man- 
ufacture and  sell  a  poison  that  should  produce  the  effect  which  alco- 
hol does'?  This  afternoon  we  are  to  form  a  Washington  Benevolent 
Society,  and  to-morrow  we  are  to  have  a  public  meeting  in  the  Park. 
Several  intemperate  men  have  signed  the  pledge.  If  you  want  to  put  an 
end  to  the  grog-shops  in  Boston,  get  the  Baltimore  delegation  to  address 
your  citizens ;  they  will  not  merely  arouse  public  indignation  against  them, 
but  will  convert  that  class  of  your  population  who  support  them. 

Yours  truly,  JOHN  MARSH, 

—  March,  29,  1 841 .  Sec'y  Am.  Temperance  Union 

There  is  to  be  a  great  temperance  procession  in  Baltimore  on  the  5th 
instant  under  the  direction  of  a  committee  of  the  Washington  Temperance 
Society.  All  the.  clergy  of  all  denominations,  Judges  of  the  courts,  inein- 
l»ri>  of  the  liar,  the  medical  faculty,  Mayor  and  city  council,  members  of 
Congress,  members  of  the  State  Legislature,  officers  of  the  army  and 


80  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

magnitude  as  to  address  a  letter  to  John  S.  Sleeper, 

navy,  and  all  persons  friendly  to  the  temperance  cause,  are  invited  to  par 
ticipate  in  the  celebration.  —  April  2,  1841. 

The  temperance  meeting  held  on  Saturday  evening  in  the  hall  at  the 
corner  of  Tremont  and  Bromfield  Streets,  agreeably  to  the  call  in  the 
papers,  was  very  fully  attended.  William  B.  Spooner  called  the  meeting 
to  order.  William  T.  Eustis  was  chosen  chairman,  and  Isaac  F.  Shepard 
and  George  W.  Bazin,  Secretaries.  —  April  6,  1841. 

The  temperance  meeting  at  the  Odeon  last  evening  was  well  attended 
and  very  interesting.  A  letter  was  read  from  the  Secretary  of  the  "Amer- 
ican Union  at  New  York,"  giving  an  account  of  the  temperance  celebra- 
tion in  Baltimore,  in  which  six  thousand  persons  marched  in  procession 
around  the  city,  while  forty  thousand  were  looking  on  the  amazing  spec- 
tacle. He  further  stated  that  the  Baltimore  Washington  Temperance 
Society  delegates  will  be  here  to-morrow,  and  that  they  made  a  most  pow- 
erful impression  in  New  York,  having  spoken  twenty  times  to  houses,  and 
in  the  Park  to  an  immense  audience.  Over  two  thousand  signed  the 
pledge.  Extracts  were  read  from  the  remarks  of  these  reformed  inebriates 
of  a  most  touching  character,  after  which  the  meeting  was  addressed  by 
Ilev.  William  Howe  and  Kev.  A.  Phelps,  city  missionaries  to  the  poor, 
occasioned  by  grog-shops  and  bar-rooms,  and  urging  the  signing  of  the 
total-abstinence  pledge.  Captain  Holbrook,  who  had  been  much  at  sea 
and  about  the  world,  made  some  feeling  remarks  on  the  use  of  intoxicat- 
ing drinks  among  sailors,  and  the  great  destruction  of  property  it  occa- 
sions, remarking  that  enough  had  been  lost  by  drunken  sea-captains  to 
"  purchase  the  whole  United  States."  John  Tappan  gave  a  brief  notice 
of  the  state  of  temperance  as  he  had  witnessed  it  during  a  recent  tour  to 
many  parts  of  the  Old  World,  all  of  which  encourage  the  hope  that  this 
cause  of  humanity,  at  home  and  abroad,  is  rapidly  progressing.  Between 
two  and  three  hundred  persons  then  gave  their  names  to  the  total-absti- 
nence pledge,  and  the  interesting  meeting  dissolved.  —  April  12,  1841. 

The  exercises  at  the  temperance  meeting  at  the  Odeon  last  evening  pos- 
sessed a  deep  and  thrilling  interest.     The  hall  was  crowded,  and  the 
meeting  was  addressed  by  Messrs.  Hawkins  and  Wright,  delegates  from 
Baltimore,  with  a  force  and  eloquence  and  a  pathos  which  has  seldom 
been  surpassed,  and  which  brought  tears  into  the  eyes  of  man}-  pr 
Another  meeting  will  be  held  at  the  Odeon  this  evening.  —  A/n-il  1  <>,  1  si  I . 
The  meeting  last  evening  was  one  of  unparalleled  interest.     The  "  Re- 
formed" spoke  with  great  eloquence  and  power  foi-iiiorc  than  two  hours, 
and  when,  at  ten  o'clock,  they  proposed  abridging  somewhat  they  hud  to 
liouts  of  "  Go  on !  go  on  !  "  were  heard  from  all  parts  of  the  house. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  81 

Esq.,  of  Boston,  giving  in  detail  the  doings  of  the  re~ 
formers  in  New  York,  and  urging  upon  the  temperance 
men  of  Boston  to  secure  a  delegation  for  their  city ; 
this  letter  was  read  at  a  public  meeting,  and  afterwards 
published  in. the  Mercantile  Journal.  Several  prelimi- 
nary meetings  were  held,  and  Mr.  Hawkins  and  Mr. 
Wright  were  invited  to  visit  Boston  as  soon  after  the 
5th  of  April  as  possible,  to  commence  their  labors  in 
that  city. 

The  following  are  extracts  from  Mr.  Hawkins'  jour- 
nal, commencing  April  14th,  1841. 

William  E.  Wright  and  myself  left  Baltimore  Saturday, 
April  10th,  1841,  for  Boston,  by  especial  invitation  of  the  Bos- 
ton City  Temperance  Society,  to  spend  a  few  weeks  in  lectur- 
ing on  the  subject  of  temperance.  We  arrived  in  New  York 
at  two  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning,  in  a  heavy  snow  storm,  which 
prevented  us  from  proceeding  on  our  journey ;  the  captain  of 
the  steamboat  considering  it  dangerous  to  go  through  the  sound 
in  the  day  or  night  in  such  a  storm.  We  thought  to  improve 
our  short  stay  in  New  York.  We  therefore  got  up  a  meeting 
in  the  Eev.  W.  W.  Wallace's  church  (Methodist  Protestant^. 
The  house  was  crowded  and  much  interest  manifested  in  the 
subject  of  temperance.  One  hundred  and  fifty-three  signed 
the  pledge. 

We  believe  more  tears  •were  never  shed  by  an  audience  in  one  evening 
thun  flowed  last  night  at  the  thrilling  recitals  that  enchained  the  mighty 
host.  Old  gray  haired  men  sobbed  like  children,  and  the  noble  and  hon- 
orable bowed  their  heads  and  wept.  Three  hundred  and  seventy-seven  came 
forward  and  made  "the  second  declaration  of  independence,"  bypledging 
themselves  to  touch  no  intoxicating  drink;  among  them  were  noticed 
many  bloated  countenances,  familiar  as  common  drunkards;  and  wo 
promise  them  health,  prosperity,  honor,  and  happiness,  in  the  pursuance 
of  their  new  principles.  Wo  extend  to  them  the  right  hand  of  fellowship. 
Brothers,  welcome  !  thrice  welcome  to  paths  of  peace!  —  April  16,  1841. 


82  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

We  left  New  York  for  Boston  in  the  steamboat  Mohegan, 
on  Tuesday  morning,  April  13,  at  six  o'clock.  Arrived  in  Bos- 
ton twelve  o'clock  same  night.  We  were  here  welcomed  and 
received  cordially  by  many  warm-hearted  friends  of  the  temper- 
ance cause  ;  amongst  them  may  be  found  the  names  of  Moses 
Grant,  Dr.  Walter  Channing,  William  B.  Spooner,  John  Ball, 
Henry  Plympton,  J.  C.  Converse,  John  Tappan,  Henry  Ed- 
wards, and  many  others.  Much  has  been  ione  in  the  (old) 
cause  of  temperance  here,  but  little  comparatively  for  the 
reformation  of  the  unfortunate  drunkard.  At  our  first  meet- 
ing, gotten  up  at  Tremont  Chapel,  under  the  Museum,  the  peo- 
ple appeared  to  look  with  astonishment  and  doubt  at  the  two 
strangers,  especially  when  we  introduced  ourselves  at  our  first 
public  lecture  as  reformed  drunkards ;  but  before  the  meeting 
closed,  doubts  and  fears  appeared  to  be  dispelled,  and  resolu- 
tions were  offered  by  William  B.  Spooner,  Esq.,  and  passed,  to 
sustain  and  stand  by  us  while  our  visit  lasted.  During  our 
stay  we  lectured  in  the  following  places :  —  First,  Tremont 
Chapel,  Wednesday  evening,  April  14th;  second,  Thursday 
evening,  Odeon,  April  15th,  eighty-two  signed ;  third,  Friday 
evening,  Marlboro'  Chapel,  two  hundred  and  seventy-nine 
signed;  fourth,  Saturday,  Bennet-Street  Methodist  Church, 
one  hundred  and  forty  signed. 

Sunday  Morning. — Went  with  Deacon  Moses  Grant  to  the 
Houses  of  Correction  and  Reformation.  Addressed  sixty-two 
boys  in  the  House  of  Reformation.  We  then  visited  the  House 
of  Correction.  Addressed  one  hundred  and  seventy-two  men 
and  one  hundred  and  fifteen  women ;  they  appeared  to  feel 
much  on  the  subject.  At  night  addressed  a  crowded  assembly 
at  the  Bethel,  Rev.  Mr.  Taylor's  ;  four  hundred  and  twenty- 
nine  signed.  Same  night  addressed  a  crowded  house  at  the 
Odeon  ;  two  hundred  signed  the  pledge.  The  work  was  now 
fairly  begun  ;  many  that  signed  were  notorious  drunkai 
Monday,  April  W«. —  Held  a  meeting  in  Rev.  Dr. 
Church  (Baptist)  ;  ninety-four  signed. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  83 

Tuesday,  20th.  —  Held  a  meeting  in  Roxbury  ;  full  house  ; 
adjourned  till  Saturday  afternoon. 

Wednesday  evening,  21st. —  Held  the  first  meeting  in  Fan- 
euil  Hall ;  the  house  crowded  to  overflowing,  notwithstanding 
the  rain. 

The  Mercantile  Journal  of  the  22d  thus  speaks  of 
this  meeting:  — 

The  great  meeting,  last  evening,  at  Faneuil  Hall,  to  receive 
the  delegates  from  the  Washington  Baltimore  Society  of  re- 
formed inebriates,  was  numerously  attended,  notwithstanding 
the  severe  storm.  Theodore  Lyman  presided,  and  on  taking 
the  chair  addressed  the  meeting  in  language  glowing  with  sym- 
pathy for  the  poor  inebriate,  and  his  afflicted  family.  He 
described  in  an  impressive  manner  the  evils  inflicted  on  society 
by  the  use  of  intoxicating  drinks.  He  inquired  who  were 
accountable  for  all  this  misery  and  suffering  ?  Certainly,  said 
he,  some  persons  are,  and  we  are  bound  to  do  what  we  can  to 
remove  it.  He  alluded  to  the  benevolent  and  successful  efforts 
now  making  for  the  unfortunate  drunkard  (referring  to  th: 
Baltimore  Washington  Society),  and  then  introduced  one  of 
the  delegates  from  that  society,  John  Hawkins,  who  riveted  the 
attention  of  the  vast  assembly  for  over  one  hour. 

The  following  is  the  language  used  by  Mr.  Hawkins 
on  that  ever-memorable  occasion,  as  reported  : 

When  I  compare  the  past  with  the  present,  my  days  of 
intemperance  with  my  present  peace  and  sobriety,  my  past 
degradation  with  my  present  position  in  tin's  hall,  the  Cradle 
of  Liberty  —  I  am- overwhelmed.  It  seems  to  me  holy  ground. 
I  never  expected  to  sec  (his  hall.  I  had  heard  of  it  in  boy- 
1'<>"<1.  'Twaa  here  Hint  Otis  and  the  elder  Adams  argued  the 
1'i'inciples  of  independence,  and  we  now  meet  here  to  declare 


84  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ourselves  free  and  independent;  to  make  a  second  declaration  of 
independence  —  not  quite  so  lengthy  as  the  old  one  —  but  it 
promises  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness.  Our  fore- 
fathers plegded  their  lives  and  fortunes  and  sacred  honors ;  we, 
too,  will  pledge  our  honor,  our  life,  but  our  fortunes  have  gone 
for  rum  !  Poor  though  we  drunkards  are,  and  miserable,  even 
in  the  gutter,  we  will  pledge  our  lives  to  maintain  sobriety. 

The  cause  of  temperance !  what  is  it  but  the  cause  of  hu- 
manity? I  need  not  talk  long  to  show  its  connection  with 
humanity.  I  have  suffered  from  every  description  of  drunken- 
ness —  have  borne  the  heat  and  burden  of  the  day  in  rum-milk 
(grog-shops),  and  know  all  about  it  —  and  I  rejoice  to  say,  in 
this  Cradle  of  Liberty,  that  whereas  I  was  once  a  drunkard  I 
am  now  a  sober  man,  and  always  mean  to  be. 

[After  the  accounts  given  of  himself  in  our  last,  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins proceeded.]  Drunkard  !  come  up  here  ;  you  can  reform  ; 
—  take  the  pledge  in  this  Cradle  of  Liberty,  and  be  ever  free  ! 
Delay  not.  I  met  a  gentleman  this  morning  who  reformed 
four  weeks  ago,  rejoicing  in  his  reformation.  He  brought  a 
man  with  him  who  took  the  pledge,  and  this  man  has  al- 
ready brought  two  others.  This  is  the  way  we  do  the  business 
up  in  Baltimore ;  we  reformed  drunkards  are  a  Committee  of 
the  Whole  on  the  state  of  the  Union!  are  all  missionaries  — 
don't  slight  the  drunkard,  but  love  him.  No ;  we  nurse  him  as 
the  mother  does  her  infant  learning  to  walk.  We  go  right  up 
to  him  and  say,  How  do  you  do  ?  and  he  remembers  our  kind- 
ness. I  tell  you,  be  kind  to  him  and  he'll  never  forget  you. 
He  has  peculiar  feelings  when  the  boys  run  after  him  and  hootr 
at  him  ;  —  take  his  part  and  he'll  never  forget  it.  He  has  bet- 
ter feelings  than  the  moderate  drinker ;  —  don't  lay  a  stumbling 
block  in  his  way.  One  man  —  poor,  miserable,  wretched,  rag- 
ged —  a  real  wharf-rat  —  (I  expect  you  have  such  here,  we 
had  plenty  of  them  in  Baltimore,  but  much  lessened  now)  —  he 
was  a  buster  about  a  year  ago,  his  clothes  not  fit  for  paper 
rags,  his  family  had  nothing  to  eat,  no  fuel,  not  even  clothes, — 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  85 

I'd  give  you  his  name,  but  won't  trouble  you,  as  he  and  his 
were  not  worth  a  '•Jip'ny-bit  ;  "  —  well,  he  told  his  brother  that 
he  was  going  to  quit,  and  wanted  him  to  go  his  security  for  a 
horse  and  cart,  but  he  would  not.  Our  members  then  went  to 
his  brother,  and  he  was  persuaded.  He  has  paid  for  his  horse 
and  cart,  his  family  and  himself  are  well  clothed,  cellar  full  of 
wood,  a  barrel  of  flour,  and  he  has  become  a  gentleman  and  a 
Christian.  And  all  this  in  one  short  year. 

Just  let  me  tell  you  about  one  of  our  reformed  men.  "We  all 
of  us  changed  a  great  deal  in  our  appearance ;  some  grew 
thin,  some  pale ;  but  a  dark-complexioned  man  grew  yellow  ; 
and  the  grogseller,  noticing  the  change  in  others,  and  seeing 
his  old  customer  not  becoming  white,  said  he  did  not  believe  he 
had  quit  it  altogether.  The  man  heard  of  it,  and  prepare^ 
himself  for  an  interview  —  so  happened  in  his  way. 

These  taverners  are  apt  to  complain  ;  say  we  do  them  an 
injury  because  we  save  our  money  for  the  support  of  our 
families — quite  villainous  to  be  sure!  And  so  they  charge 
us  with  drinking  a  little ;  but  I  tell  you  that  we  keep  close 
watch  of  each  other ;  we  are  very  loving,  and  we  take  care 
to  get  along-side  the  mouth  and  know  what  has  been  going  on 
there. 

As  I  was  going  to  tell  you,  the  taverner  said  to  the  member 
"  It  appears  to  me  you  don't  alter  quite  so  much  as  the  rest." 
— "  Don't  I,"  said  he,  "well,  why  don't  I  ?  "— «  Why  you  don't 
look  pale  ;  you  grow  yallar."  —  ",  I  grow  yallai',  you  think  ?"  — 
"  Yes."  —  "  Well,"  said  the  man,  drawing  out  a  handful  of  gold 
pieces  from  his  pantaloons  pocket,  "  these  look  yallar  too  ;  but 
you  don't  get  any  more  of  them;  they  belong  here,"  returning 
them  to  his  pocket,  "and  my  wife  will  have  them.  You'll  get 
no  more  of  them  —  that  is  the  trouble  with  you." 

These    grogsellers  know  how  to  fix  the  drunkards,  —  (hoy 

understand  their  business.     They  keep  a  big  platter  of  salt,  fish, 

cheese,   herring,   and  crackers,  to  fix  the  appetite  —  all  free; 

don't  ask  any  thing,  of  course,  for  them ;  but  when  they  see  a 

8 


86  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

man  take  hold  and  eat  a  little,  they  think  they  have  him  ;  he'll 
want  to  wash  it  down,  —  he'll  get  started  and  "  he'll  do  well 
enough  yet."  Well  the  stuff  is  very  apt  to  stick  in  the  throat, 
so  it  is  washed  down,  and  then  the  breath  must  be  changed, 
and  a  little  more  fish  or  cheese  is  taken,  and  that  must  be 
washed  out  of  the  throat ;  and  so  it  goes.  But  if  a  man  eats 
and  don i  drink,  he  is  pretty  sure  to  be  told  that  that  will  not  do, 

This  drinking  has  killed  more  men,  women,  and  children, 
than  war,  pestilence,  and  all  other  evils  together.  You  cannot 
bring  upon  man  so  awful  a  curse  as  alcohol ;  it  cannot  be  done  ; « 
no  machinery,  or  invention  of  death  can  work  like  it.  Is  there 
a  moderate  drinker  who  says  he  can  use  "  a  little,"  or  "  much," 
and  "  quit  when  he  pleases  ?  "  I  tell  him  from  experience  he 
can't  do  it.  Well,  he  can  if  Tie  will,  but  HE  WON'T  WILL  !  that 
is  the  difficulty,  and  there  is  the  fatal  mistake.  Does  he  want 
to  know  whether  he  can  ?  I  ask  him  to  go  without  his  accus- 
tomed morning  bitters  or  his  eleven-o'clock,  to-morrow,  and  he 
will  find  how  he  loves  it !  We  have  come  up  out  of  the  gutter, 
to  tell  him  how  he  loves  it,  and  how  he  may  escape.  It  is  the 
moderate  use  —  the  little,  the  pretty  drink,  the  genteel  and 
fashionable,  that  does  the  mischief.  The  moderate  drinker  is 
training  to  take  the  place  of  the  drunkard. 

Go  to  Baltimore  and  see  now  our  happy  wives  and  families. 
Only  look  at  our  procession  on  the  5th  of  April,  wh<  a  we  cele- 
brated our  anniversary.  Six  thousand  men;  nearly  half  of 
them  reformed  within  a  year,  followed  by  two  thousand  boys, 
of  all  ages,  to  give  assurance  to  the  world  that  the  next  genera- 
tion shall  all  be  sober.  But  where  were  our  wives  on  that  occa- 
sion ?  at  home,  shut  up  with  hungry  children  in  rags,  as  a  year 
ago  ?  No,  no !  but  in  carriages,  riding  round  the  streets  to 
see  their  sober  husbands ! 

My  family  were  in  a  hack,  and  I  carried  apples,  cakes,  &c. 
to  them,  and  wife  said  "  How  happy  all  look ;  why,  husband, 

there  is all  dressed  up  ;  —  and  only  think,  I  saw  old  - 

in  the  procession,  as  happy  and  smart  as  any  of  them ;"  and  so 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  87 

she  went  on  telling  me  whom  she  had  seen.  And  where  do  you 
think  the  grog-sellers'  wives  were  ?  were  they  out  ?  Not  they ! 
Some  of  them  peeped  out  from  behind  their  curtains!  We 
cut  down  the  rum-tree  that  day  in  Baltimore,  under  ground ; 
not  on  the  top  of  the  ground,  leaving  a  stump,  but  under  ground, 
roots  and  all ! 

We  have  not  seen  six  drunkards  staggering  in  the  streets 
since  we  have  been  in  Boston ;  and  we  have  been  all  around, 
even  in  Ann  Street.  They  must  hide  themselves.  If  they 
are  put  into  the  House  of  Correction,  I  don't  wonder  they  hide. 
I  said  when  I  talked  to  them  on  the  Sabbath,  over  there,  that 
I  wished  I  had  a  distiller  at  my  right  hand  and  a  rum-seller  at 
my  left,  and  let  them  answer  the  question,  what  brought  all 
these  here  ?  and  we  would  have  had  the  answer,  RUM.  This 
making  the  drunkard  by  a  thousand  temptations  and  induce- 
ments, and  then  shutting  him  up  in  prison,  is  a  cruel  and  hor- 
rible business.  You  make  the  drunkard,  and  then  let  him 
come  into  your  house,  and  you  turn  him  out ;  let  him  come  to 
the  church,  and  you  turn  him  out;  friends  cast  him  off;  the 
grog-seller  turns  him  out  when  his  money  is  gone,  or  midnight 
comes.  When  he  serves  his  time  out  in  the  prison,  he  is 
turned  out  with  the  threat  of  a  flogging  if  he  is  ever  caught 
again ;  and  yet  you  keep  open  the  place  where  he  is  entangled 
and  destroyed.  You  are  bound  to  turn  the  whole  tide  of  public 
opinion  against  the  traffic.  The  seller  will  pour  down  your 
son's  throat  a  tide  of  liquor,  and  you  do  so  to  his  son,  and  he 
would  cut  your  throat.  Ask  him  if  he  is  willing  you  should 
make  his  daughter  a  drunkard  ?  and  why  should  he  make  your 
SON  one? 

At  the  close  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  address,  he  introduced 
Mr.  Johnson,  of  Boston,  a  shoemaker,  recently  reformed, 
who  now  for  the  first  time  spoke  in  public ;  he  spoke 
with  great  eflect,  bringing  tears  to  many  eyes. 

The  scene,  altogether,  was  a  solemn  and  imposing 


88  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

one.  The  hall  was  draped  in  mourning,  in  token  of 
the  deep  grief  of  the  nation  at  the  death  of  the  la- 
mented Harrison.  The  resolutions*  presented  and 

*  The  following  preamble  and  scries  of  resolutions  were  read,  and 
unanimously  adopted,  and  the  meeting  adjourned  to  Friday  evening,  at 
the  same  place,  —  the  "  Cradle  of  Liberty,"  —  to  continue  the  subject  of 
a  "  second  declaration  of  independence,"  by  signing  the  total-abstinence 
pledge  from  all  intoxicating  drinks.  The  delegates  and  others  will  con- 
tinue the  great  subject :  — 

We  are  assembled  amidst  the  emblems  of  a  nation's  sorrow.  In  this  venerated 
hall,  sacred  to  all  the  associations  of  freemen,  the  voice  of  eloquence  has  hardly  ceased 
to  dwell  on  a  calamity  which  has  awakened  the  sympathies  of  an  afflicted  people. 
Subdued  by  a  common  misfortune,  here  they  have  united  in  the  expression  of  their 
grief,  and  have  forgotten  the  divisions  of  party  strife,  in  the  nobler  desire  to  pay  appro- 
priate honors  to  the  memory  of  their  chief.  At  such  a  tune,  and  in  such  a  place, 
chastened  by  all  the  influences  which  circumstances  so  imposing  are  calculated  to 
throw  around  us,  we  have  come  to  deliberate  upon  an  evil  which  is  spreading  misery 
and  desolation  throughout  the  laud ;  carrying  want  and  disease  into  the  abodes  of  do- 
mestic peace,  and  filling  up  the  broad  limits  of  the  community  with  pauperism  and 
crime;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  when  the  passions  of  men  are  soothed  by  a  common  misfortune,  it  is 
a  proper  tune  to  present  to  their  calm  deliberation  an  evil  of  such  magnitude,  and 
that  the  character  of  the  people  to  whom  it  is  presented,  who  are  capable  of  such  gen- 
erous sacrifices  in  political  controversies,  is  a  sufficient  guaranty  that  our  views  will 
be  received  with  candor,  and  examined  with  impartiality. 

Resolved,  That  we  receive  with  gladness,  in  this  Temple  of  Liberty,  the  delegates 
from  the  Washington  Baltimore  Temperance  Society  of  reformed  inebriates,  and  hail 
the  noble  stand  they  have  taken  in  the  cause  of  humanity,  as  marking  a  new  era  in 
the  temperance  reformation ;  that  their  example  is  a  living  argument  which  nothing  can 
refute,  and  that  it  is  expedient  to  form  a  similar  society  in  this  city. 

Resolved,  That  the  approbation  of  distinguished  patriots  and  statesmen  encourages 
us  to  persevere  in  the  cause  in  which  we  are  engaged,  and  that  we  will  not  relax  our 
efforts  until  the  land  is  redeemed  from  the  pestilence  which  invades  it ;  that  we  will 
invoke  the  dealer,  until  he  shall  say  from  his  heart,  in  the  language  of  the  lamented 
Harrison,  "Whereas,  I  have  sinned, —  I  will  sin  no  more ;  "  and  those  who  are  in  bond- 
age to  the  tyrant  Alcohol,  we  will  urge  to  break  their  fetters,  and  be  il  as  of  right  they 
ought  to  be,  free  and  independent  "  citizens ;  and  to  the  young  and  rising  generation, 
who  have  not  yet  put  on  the  chains  of  this  moral  despot,  we  will  echo  around  these 
consecrated  walls,  glowing  with  the  almost  speaking  resemblances  of  the  sires  of  our 
country's  freedom,  the  impressive  injunction  of  one  of  the  earliest  martyrs  to  her  lib- 
erty, "  My  sons,  scorn  to  be  slaves!  " 

This  was  a  noble  meeting  ;  I  remember  nothing  like  it.  The  evening 
was  stormy  with  rain,  but  men  and  women  showed  tlu-y  li:id  no  liar  of 
cold  water.  The  lower  part  of  the  hall  was,  with  the  exception  of  several 
women,  filled  with  men.  Prom  top  to  end  it  was  full ;  the  galleries,  with 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  89 

passed  at  the  close  of  the  exercises,  were  most  beauti- 
fully and  eloquently  worded,  alluding  in  the  most  touch- 
ing manner  to  the  nation's  grief  on  the.  one  hand,  and 
on  the  other  to  the  joy  which  the  inauguration  of  the 
new  reformatory  movement  was  calculated  to  inspire. 
Two  hundred  and  ten  persons  signed  the  pledge,  and 
the  meeting  adjourned  to  Friday  evening. 

On  Thursday  Mr.  Hawkins  addressed  a  meeting  in 
the  Baptist  Church,  Chelsea ;  one  hundred  and  sixteen 
signed. 

women.  Rev.  Mr.  Gray  offered  prayer.  General  Theodore  Lyman,  an 
ex-mayor  of  the  city,  presided.  He  opened  the  meeting  in  a  strain  of  true 
eloquence ;  showed  what  was  the  evil  of  intemperance,  and  how  much  it  was 
the  duty  of  all  good  and  true  men  to  do  all  in  their  power  to  remove  it. 
Everybody  was  happy  to  see  our  respected  fellow-citizen  presiding  over 
such  a  meeting,  and  manifested  their  deep  pleasure  to  hear  from  him  such 
sentiments.  The  President  introduced  to  the  meeting,  John  Hawkins,  a 
delegate  from  the  Baltimore  Washington  Temperance  Society  of  reformed 
drunkards.  I  have  often  heard  Mr.  Hawkins,  but  to  my  mind  he  was 
never  so  happy  as  on  this  occasion.  He  came  to  us  with  a  story  of  misery 
unparalleled  in  interest,  and  told  with  a  simplicity,  a  natural  eloquence, 
that  cannot  be  surpassed.  You  saw  all  round,  your  own  eyes  filled  with 
tears,  weeping  men,  women,  and  children.  Never  was  sympathy  so  per- 
fect; never  more  contagious.  Would  that  the  hall  could  have  held 
thousands  more.  Mr.  II.  has  great  power  of  voice,  and  could  have  been 
heard  by  the  whole.  Mr.  Hawkins  introduced  to  the  meeting,  Mr.  John- 
son, a  reformed  inebriate  of  Boston,  who  occupied  a  few  minutes  in  tell- 
ing his  personal  experience  of  the  miseries  and  horrors  of  intemperance. 
Mr.  Johnson  spoke  with  true  eloquence,  for  his  words  came  from  his  heart. 
Everybody  manifested  joy  at  his  perfect  emancipation  from  the  slavery  of 
intemperance,  and  wished  him  "  ( !od  speed."  Before  Mr.  Hawkins  spoke, 
resolutions  were  otl'ered  by  Mr.  Converse,  embodying  most  important 
truths.  Moses  Grant  followed  Mr.  Johnson,  in  a  few  remarks,  in  his  best 
manner,  showing  how  important  is  the  good  work,  and  how  nobly  it  is 
advancing.  Dr.  Walter  Channing  then  moved  the  acceptance  of  the  res- 
olutions, and  everybody  gave  them  his  and  her  hearty  vote.  Then  fol- 
lowed three  cheers,  which  made  the  old  hall  ring  with  its  BUCOUrtgillg 
sound.  The  meeting  was  adjourned  to  Friday  (to-morrow)  evening. 
1 'ledges  were  then  taken  in  great  numbers.  —  Mercantile  Journal. 
8* 


90  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

We  extract  the  following  from  Mr.  Hawkins'  jour- 
nal :  — 

Faneuil  Hall,  Friday  Evening,  April  23.— -Meeting  accord- 
ing to  adjournment — General  Theodore  Lyman  in  the  chair; 
interest  increasing;  a  vast  number  signed  the  pledge." 

From  the  public  journals  we  extract  the  following 
account  of  the  meeting :  — 

An  immense  concourse  of  people  assembled  at  the  Cradle 
of  Liberty  last  evening.  General  Theodore  Lyman  presided, 
and  opened  the  meeting  by  a  neat  and  happy  speech.  He 
spoke  of  the  reformation  of  the  drunkards  in  Baltimore  in  a 
manner  alike  honorable  to  himself  and  them,  and  in  reference 
to  the  degrading  vice  of  intemperance  related  a  most  interest- 
ing ease'of  the  fall  of  one  of  the  brightest  ornaments  of  the 
bar,  that  had  come  under  his  own  observation.  The  dense 
throng  united  in  singing,  to  the  grand  tune  of  "  Old  Hundred," 
the  hymn  beginning, — 

"Here  Freedom's  life-cry  taught  the  bravo, 
Our  belted  fathers,  to  be  free." 

and  the  old  hall  rang  again  with  the  sublime  and  majestic 
sound.  Mr.  Lyman  then  introduced  Mr.  Hawkins,  who  en- 
chained the  audience  until  ten  o'clock,  in  his  most  happy  man- 
ner. Alternate  smiles,  shouts,  and  tears,  bore  witness  to  the 
effect  he  was  producing  by  the  simple  recital  of  what  he  him- 
self had  suffered  and  experienced  of  intemperance  and  misery. 
Nor  was  ho  deficient  in  his  pictures  of  the  happiness  attendant 
on  his  reformation.  He  laid  down  the  position  that  the  drunk- 
ard can  be  saved,  and  he  labored  effectually  to  convince  him 
of  it.  Numbers,  even  then  under  the  influence  of  the  cup, 
came  forward  and  signed  the  total-abstinence  pledge. 

The  following  is  the  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  in 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  91 

which  he  gives  a  more  minute  account  of  his  past  life 
and  his  then  recent  reformation.  We  give  the  whole 
of  this  address  as  there  are  several  things  alluded  to 
which  have  been  intentionally  omitted,  preferring  to 
have  Mr.  Hawkins  speak  as  much  as  possible  for  him- 
self:— 

I  was  born  of  respectable  parents,  and  was  educated  by  a 
minister,  and  then  bound  out  to  the  hatting  business,  in  as  per- 
fect a  grog-shop  as  ever  existed.  [Passing  over  what  has 
already  been  quoted,  he  proceeds.]  For  fifteen  years  past, 
time  after  time,  I  rose  and  fell,  was  up  and  down.  I  would 
quit  all,  and  then  take  a  little  glass.  I  would  earn'  fifteen  dol- 
lars a  week,  and  be  happy  and  well,  and  with  my  money  in 
Land  start  for  home,  and  in  some  unaccountable  way,  impercep- 
tibly and  irresistibly,  fall  into  a  tavern,  and  think  one  glass 
would  do  me  good.  But  I  found  that  a  single  glass  of  ale 
would  conquer  all  my  resolutions.  I  appeal  to  all  my  fellow- 
drunkards  if  it  is  not  exactly  so ;  if  the  one  glass  of  any  intox- 
icating drink  does  not  annihilate,  by  revival  of  the  appetite,  all 
resolutions  to  resist  drinking  on.  June  13th,  1840,  I  drank 
and  suffered  awfully ;  I  cannot  tell  how  much  I  suffered  in 
mind  ;  in  body  every  thing,  but  in  mind  more.  I  drank  dread- 
fully the  two  first  weeks  of  June,  —  bought  by  the  gallon, 
and  drank,  and  drank,  and  was  about  taking  life,  —  drunk  all 
the  time. 

On  the  14th  I  was  a  wonder  to  m/self ;  astonished  I  had 
any  mind  left ;  and  yet  it  seemed  in  the  goodness  of  God  un- 
commonly clear.  I  laid  in  bed  long  after  my  wife  and  daughter 
were  up,  and  my  conscience  drove  me  to  madness.  I  hated 
the  darkness  of  the  night,  and  when  light  came  I  hated  the 
light.  1  hated  myself,  my  existence.  1  asked  myself,  "  Can  I 
iv-train?  is  it  possible?  Not  a  being  to  take;  me  by  the,  hand 
and  lead  or  help  me  along,  and  say,  'you  can.'"  I  was  iViend- 
without  help  or  light;  an  unleash.  My  wile  came  up- 


92  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS. 

stairs,  and  knew  I  was  suffering,  and  asked  me  to  go  down  to 
breakfast.  I  had  a  pint  of  whisky,  and  thought  I  would 
drink ;  and  yet  I  knew  it  was  life  or  death  with  me,  as  I  de- 
cided. Moderate  drinkers,  beware !  take  care  you  dont  get 
into  this  condition.  Well,  I  told  my  wife  I  would  come  down 
presently.  Then  my  daughter  came  up  and  asked  me  down. 
I  always  loved  her  more  because  she  was  a  drunkard's  friend 
—  my  only  friend.  And  then  she  said,  "  Father,  don't  send  me 
after  whisky  to-day."  I  was  tormented  before,  but  this  was 
unexpected  torture.  I  told  her  to  leave  the  chamber,  and  she 
went  down  crying,  and  said  to  her  mother,  "  Father  is  angry 
with  me."  Wife  came  up  again,  and  asked  me  to  take  some 
coffee.  I  told  her  I  did  not  want  any  thing  of  her,  and  covered 
myself  in  the  bed.  I  soon  heard  some  one  enter  the  room,  and 
I  peeped  out  and  saw  it  was  my  daughter.  I  then  thought 
of  my  past  life,  my  degradation,  misery  of  my  friends,  and 
felt  bad  enough.  So  I  called  her,  and  said,  "  Hannah,  I  am 
not  angry  with  you,  and  I  shall  not  drink  any  more."  She 
cried,  and  so  did  I.  I  got  up  and  went  to  the  cupboard  and 
looked  at  the  enemy,  my  whisky  bottle,  and  thought,  "  Is  it 
possible  I  can  be  restored  ?  "  and  then  turned  my  back  upon  it. 
Several  times  while  dressing  I  looked  at  the  bottle,  but  thought 
I  should  be  lost  if  I  yielded.  Poor  drunkard !  there  is  hope 
for  you  !  You  cannot  be  worse  off  than  I  was ;  not  more  de- 
graded, or  more  of  a  slave  to  appetite.  You  can  return  if  you 
will.  Try  it,  try  it ! 

Well,  Monday  nighl  I  went  to  the  society  of  drunkards,  and 
there  I  found  all  my  old  bottle  companions.  I  did  not  tell  any- 
body I  was  going,  not  even  my  wife.  I  had  got  out  of  difficulty, 
but  did  not  know  how  long  I  would  keep  out.  The  "  six-pound- 
ers "  of  the  society  were  there.  We  had  fished  together  —  got 
drunk  together.  We  stuck  like  brothers,  and  so  we  do  now 
that  we  are  sober.  One  said,  "  There  is  Hawkins,  the  '  regu- 
lator,' the  old  bruiser"  and  they  clapped  and  laughed,  as  you 
uo  now.  But  there  was  no  laugh  or  clap  in  me.  I  \va?  too 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS.  93 

sober  and  solemn  for  that.  The  pledge  was  read  for  my  ac- 
commodation ;  they  did  not  say  so,  and  yet  I  knew  it.  They 
all  looked  over  my  shoulder  to  see  me  write  my  name.  I 
never  had  such  feelings  before.  It  was  a  great  battle. 

At  eleven  I  went  home.  Because  when  I  staid  out  late  I 
always  went  home  drunk,  wife  had  given  me  up  again,  and  she 
began  to  think  about  breaking  up  and  going  home  to  mother's. 
My  yard  is  covered  with  brick,  and  as  I  went  over  the  brick, 
wife  listened,  as  she  told  me,  to  determine  whether  the  gate 
opened  drunk  or  sober,  for  she  could  tell ;  and  it  opened  sober  and 
shut  sober ;  and  when  I  entered,  my  wife  was  standing  in  the 
middle  of  the  room,  to  see  me  as  I  came  in.  She  was  aston- 
ished ;  but  I  smiled,  and  she  smiled,  as  I  caught  her  keen  black 
eye.  I  told  her  quick,  —  I  could  not  keep  it  back,  —  "  /  have 
put  my  name  to  the  temperance  pledge  never  to  drink  as  long  as 
I  live  !  "  It  was  a  happy  time.  I  cried,  and  she  cried  ;  we 
could  not  hush  it,  and  our  crying  waked  up  our  daughter, 
and  she  cried  too.  I  tell  you  this,  that  you  may  know  how 
happy  the  reformation  of  a  drunkard  makes  his  family.  I  slept 
none  that  night ;  my  thoughts  were  better  than  sleep.  Next 
morning  I  went  to  see  my  mother ;  old  as  she  was,  I  must  go 
and  see  her,  and  tell  her  of  our  joy.  She  had  been  praying 
twenty  years  for  her  drunken  son.  Now  she  said,  "It  is 
enough;  I  am  ready  to  die."  It  made  all  my  connections 
happy. 

The  next  thing  was  to  determine  what  was  to  be  done.  My 
mind  was  blunted,  my  character  gona ;  I  was  bloated,  and  I 
was  getting  old ;  but  men  who  had  slighted  me  came  to  my 
help  again,  and  took  me  by  the  hand,  held  me  up,  encouraged 
and  comforted  me. 

I'll  never  slight  a  drunkard  as  long  as  I  live ;  he  needs 
sympathy,  and  is  worthy  of  it,  poor  and  miserable  as  he  is; 
li  •  did  not  design  to  become  a  drunkard,  and  people  have 
loo  long  told  him  he  cannot  reform  ;  it,  is  no  use  ;  he,  must  die 
u  drunkard.  But  now  we  assure  him  he  can  reform,  and 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS. 

not  live  or  die  so ;  and  we  show  ourselves,  two  hundred  in  one 
year,  as  evidence  of  the  fact.  The  poor  wretch  here  is 
crammed  into  the  poor-house  or  prison,  and  when  he  comes  out 
he  meets  temptation  at  every  step ;  he  begs  you  to  succor  him ; 
but  he  is  led  by  appetite  and  neglect  straight  to  the  grog-shop. 
Drunkard !  come  up  here.  You  can  reform  !  Take  the  pledge 
in  this  Cradle  of  Liberty,  and  be  forever  free  !  Delay  not.  ° 

After  Mr.  Hawkins  sat  down,  Mr.  Grant  offered  the 
following  resolutions,  which  were  received  with  three 
cheers :  — 

Whereas,  This  is  the  last  opportunity  we  shall  have  to  hear 
the  delegates  from  the  Washington  Baltimore  Temperance  So- 
ciety plead  for  the  poor,  unfortunate  drunkard  and  his  family, 
within  these  consecrated  walls ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  this  meeting  tender  their  warmest  acknowl- 
edgments and  sincerest  gratitude,  for  the  eloquent  manner  in 
which  Mr.  John  Hawkins  has  advocated  the  claim  to  sympathy 
for  the  forlorn,  and  too  often  forsaken,  inebriate,  and  for  the 
deep  interest  he  has  awakened  in  the  public  mind,  on  the  great 
subject  of  temperance. 

Resolved,  That  we  regret  he  cannot  longer  remain  with  us 
than  on  Thursday  next,  and  that  we  wish  him  a  safe  return  to 
his  beloved  wife,  and  daughter  Hannah,  hoping  that  he  will 
conclude  to  make  us  another  early  visit,  and  be  sure  to  bring 
them  with"  him,  that  so  he  may  be  willing  to  remain  and  con- 
tinue his  work  of  philanthropy. 

Here  a  scene  occurred  similar  to  the  one  in  New 
York.  A  man  influenced  by  the  remarks  of  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins arose  in  the  gallery,  under  feelings  of  deep  emotion, 
and  thanked  him  for  being  the  instrument  in  inducing 
him  to  reform  his  mode  of  life.  He  bade  him  God 
speed!  and  promised  his  hearty  support.  He  came 
down,  says  the  account,  went  up  to  the  rostrum,  and 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  95 

enrolled  his  name  upon  the  pledge  as  Dennis  William 
O'Brien.  A  host  of  pledges  were  taken  at  the  meeting. 

On  Saturday,  according  to  appointment,  Mr  Hawk- 
ins met  the  people  of  E-oxbury;  many  signed  the 
pledge,  and  a  Washington  Temperance  Society  was 
formed.  At  night,  he  lectured  in  the  North-Russell 
Street  Methodist  Church :  one  hundred  and  fifteen 
signed  the  pledge. 

On  Sunday  evening,  25th,  he  addressed  the  prisoners 
in  the  State  Prison  at  Charlestown,  three  hundred  and 
twenty-seven  in  number.  "  They  seemed,"  he  says  in 
his  journal,  "  to  feel  much  their  situation,  knowing  the 
primary  cause  of  their  misery  was  the  use  of  intoxi- 
cating drink ;  they  wept  like  children."  The  thrilling 
interest  of  this  meeting  seemed  to  impress  itself  on 
many  minds.  The  following  account  appeared  in  the 
Boston  Mercantile  Journal-  on  Monday  morning,  April 
26, 1841  :— 

We  were  present  yesterday  forenoon  at  the  services  at  the 
State  Prison  in  Charlestown.  The  convicts  were  collected  in 
the  chapel.  The  services  consisted  of  prayer,  and  reading  of 
the  Scriptures,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Curtis,  the  excellent  chaplain  of 
the  prison,  and  sacred  music,  and  an  address  to  the  convicts  by 
John  Hawkins  of  Baltimore,  who  is  now,  with  his  friend  and 
co-laborer,  Mr.  "Wright,  effecting  so  much  good  in  this  city. 
Mr.  Hawkins  delivered  a  most  touching  and  eloquent  address, 
one  which  came  home  to  the  bosoms  and  feelings  of  every  one 
present.  It  was  an  address  calculated  to  produce  a  most  ben- 
eficial effect,  especially  when  we  consider  that  intemperance  is 
the  rock  on  which  many,  nearly  all,  of  those  convicts  have  been 
wrecked.  He  was  listened  to  with  closest  attention  while  he 
described  what  he  knew  of  the  evils  of  intemperance,  of  the 
terrible  effects  it  had  produced  upon  himself  and  his  family ; 
and  he  showed  that  the  drunkard,  although  by  many  regarded 


96  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.    W.   HAWKINS. 

as  incorrigible,  and  treated  as  an  outcast  from  society,  can  be 
reformed,  and  become  a  respectable  and  useful  member  of  so- 
ciety. He  spoke  feelingly ;  the  words  seemed  to  come  from 
the  bottom  of  his  heart ;  and  they  were  not  unheeded.  Those 
convicts  seemed  to  feel  the  force  of  this  language ;  this  appeal 
to  their  feelings,  to  their  better  nature,  was  not  in  vain.  All 
of  them  seemed  to  regard  him  as  a  friend,  as  a  monitor,  who 
came  among  them  to  fortify  their  souls  against  crime;  and 
many  of  them  wept,  yes,  those  rough-looking,  despised  men, 
wept  like  children,  and  those  were  precious  tears. 

Mr.  Hawkins'  journal  contains  this  entry  :  — 

Sunday  night  25th  April.  —  Lectured  at  the  Odeon;  the 
house  was  filled  to  overflowing ;  exceeding  great  interest  was 
manifested  in  the  cause  of  temperance ;  great  numbers  signed 
the  pledge. 

The  Mercantile  Journal  of  Monday  thus  speaks :  — 

The  temperance  meeting  at  the  Odeon  last  evening  was  a 
glorious  affair.  At  an  early  hour  every  seat,  and  indeed  every 
standing-place,  was  occupied.  Hundreds  were  obliged  to  go 
away,  unable  to  obtain  admittance.  Mr.  Hawkins  addressed  this 
numerous  audience  about  two  hours,  and  was  listened  to  through- 
out with  intense  interest.  Such  a  temperance  meeting  has  sel- 
dom been  held  in  this  country.  His  remarks  were  exceedingly 
eloquent  and  seemed  to  produce  a  wonderful  effect  on  the  vast 
congregation  who  listened  to  him.  No  other  speaker  addressed 
the  audience.  Upwards  of  two  hundred  pledges  were  given  at 
the  close  of  the  meeting.  In  the  course  of  his  remarks  Mr. 
Hawkins  referred  in  a  beautiful  and  impressive  manner  to  the 
scene  which  he  had  witnessed  at  the  State  Prison  in  the  morn- 
ing. To-morrow  evening  he  will  lecture  in  South  Boston,  and 
on  Wednesday  evening  at  the  Marlboro'  Chapel.  P>ery  one 
should  go  and  hear  him. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  .  97 

The  activity  of  Mr.  Hawkins  in  this  reform  was 
truly  amazing ;  his  whole  being  seemed  to  be  engrossed 
in  the  work  of  saving  the  drunkard.  "  I  will  never 
slight  a  drunkard  as  long  as  I  live,"  was  a  principle  to 
which  he  adhered  to  the  last  day  of  his  labors  on  earth. 

Mr.  Hawkins'  style  in  these  addresses,  and  his  per- 
sonal appearance,  may  be  gathered  from  the  record 
of  eye-witnesses.  "  Mr.  Hawkins,"  says  one  writer. 
"is  a  man  about  forty-four  years  of  age,  of  fine, 
manly  form  ;  he  spoke  with  much  fluency,  force,  and 
effect,  in  a  vein  of  free-and-easy,  off-hand,  direct, 
manly,  bang-up  style;  at  times  in  a  simple,  conver- 
sational manner,  then  earnest  and  vehement,  then 
pathetic,  then  humorous ;  but  always  manly  and  rea- 
sonable." —  "  Mr.  Hawkins  always  succeeded  in  '  work- 
ing up '  his  audience  finely.  Now,  the  house  was  as 
quiet  and  still  as  a  deserted  church,  and  anon,  the  high 
dome  rung  with  violent  bursts  of  laughter  and  applause. 
Now,  he  assumed  the  melting  mood,  and  pictured  the 
scenes  of  a  drunkard's  home,  —  and  that  home  his  own, 
—  and  the  fountains  of  generous  feeling,  in  many 
hearts,  gushed  forth  in  tears ;  and  again,  in  a  moment, 
as  he  related  some  ludicrous  story,  those  tearful  eyes 
glistened  with  delight,  sighs  changed  to  hearty  shouts, 
and  long  faces  were  convulsed  with  broad  grins  and 
glorious  smiles." 

A  letter  from  Deacon  Moses  Grant,  of  April  15th, 
1841,  to  the  editor  of  the  American  Temperance  Union, 
N.  Y.,  thus  speaks  :  — 

I  have  delayed  writing  from  a  press  of  duties  connected 
with  the  visit  of  our  friends,  Messrs.  Hawkins  and  Wright ; 
and  as  you  wrote,  they  exceeded  all  expectation,  particularly 
9 


98  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.   HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins,  who  is  a  powerful  man.  You  will  see  by  the 
Mercantile  Journal  how  the  meetings  go  on  ;  they  are  crowded, 
and  intensely  interesting.  We  go  into  Faneuil  Hall  on  Wednes- 
day afternoon  and  evening.  It  is  dressed  in  mourning  for  the 
eulogy  to-morrow,  when  we  avail  ourselves  of  the  entire  seats 
and  fixtures  for  the  funeral  obsequies,  I  hope,  of  old  King  Al- 
cohol. We  never  had  any  thing  like  the  interest  now  felt  on 
this  great  subject.  Last  evening  we  filled  the  Odeon  and  Mr. 
Taylor's  church  also. 

;'  The  meeting  on  "Wednesday  evening  in  Faneuil 
Hall,"  says  the  Mercantile  Journal,  "  was  one  of  thrill- 
ing interest.  Mr.  Hawkins  arose  amidst  great  ap- 
plause, and  spoke  an  hour  with  much  fluency  and 
appropriateness  of  diction.  His  soul  overflowed  with 
intense  feeling  for  the  poor  drunkard,  and  often  he  was 
obliged  to  stop  to  brush  the  tears  from  his  manly  cheek. 
His  address  abounded  with  anecdote,  and  was  fre- 
quently characterized  by  deep  and  impassioned  elo- 
quence." 

To  return  to  his  journal. 

Monday,  2Qth: — Afternoon,  held  a  meeting  in  Tremont 
Chapel ;  formed  a  "  Martha  Washington  Temperance  Society." 
Evening,  held  a  meeting  in  Marlboro'  Chapel ;  formed  a  "  Bos- 
ton Washington  Temperance  Society,"  of  reformed  inebriates  ; 
one  hundred  and  thirty  gave  in  their  names. 

The  friends  of  temperance  now  thought  the  work 
was  fairly  and  effectually  begun.  "  This  is  doing  well," 
said  one  of  the  public  journals,  in  giving  an  account 
of  this  meeting  ;  "  we  believe  that  by  this  act  a  blow  is 
given  to  intemperance  in  this  city  from  which  it  will 
not  recover.  Several  of  these  true  reformers  came  for- 
ward and  in  a  forcible  and  feeling  manner  sketched  the 


LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.   W.    HAWKINS.  99 

miseries  which  attended  the  drunkard  and  his  wretched 
family.  This  new  and  interesting  association  was  then 
addressed  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  at  considerable  length,  in 
which  he  exhorted  them  to  be  steadfast  in  the  resolu- 
tion which  they  had  nobly  formed,  and  to  look  to 
their  God  for  aid  in  carrying  out  the  great  principles 
which  they  had  adopted."  * 

Tuesday,  27th.  —  Held  a  meeting  in  South  Boston  ;  one 
hundred  and  sixty  signed  the  pledge. 

Wednesday,  28th. —  Boston  W.  T.  Society  met  in  the  Marl- 
boro' Chapel  according  to  adjournment ;  one  hundred  and  fifty 
signed  the  pledge. 

TJmrsday,  29th. —  Held  a  meeting  in  Danvers ;  crowded 
house;  large  numbers  signed  the  pledge;  adjourned  to  meet 
again  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a  society. 

Mr.  Hawkins,  feeling  that  he  had  now  been  absent 
from  his  family  as  long  as  he  could  be  conveniently, 
began  his  journey  southward.  It  will  be  seen  from  his 
journal  that  he  was  industriously  and  usefully  employed 
by  the  way. 

Friday  morning,  April  30th. —  Left  Boston  for  Baltimore, 
by  way  of  "Worcester;  remained  in  "Worcester  till  Monday 
morning,  May  3d ;  three  hundred  and  eighteen  persons  signed 
the  pledge. 

Monday. —  Arrived  in  Norwich,  Conn.;  lectured  in  the 
Town  Hall;  left  same  evening  for  New  York;.  Jive  hundred 
and  twenty  signed  the  pledge,.  Reached  New  York  Tuesday 
morning.  May  5th,  7i  A.M.  At  12|  P.M.  took  the  cars  for 
Patterson,  New  Jersey. 

Tuesday  I'miimj. —  Hi -Id  a  meeting  in  the  Methodist  church  • 
crowded  ;  no  pledges  circulated. 

*  See  Boston  Journal,  April  27th,  1841. 


100  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Wednesday  evening,  6th. —  Meeting  in  the  same  house  ;  large 
congregation ;  one  hundred  signed  the  pledge. 

Continuing  still  in  Patterson,  he  met  the  females  in 
the  Free  Church,  and  formed  a  "  Martha  Washington 
Temperance  Society." 

Friday  evening,  May  8th.  —  Held  a  meeting  in  the  Method- 
ist Church  ;  formed  a  Washington  Temperance  Society  ,  three 
hundred  and  fifteen  signed  the  pledge. 

Saturday  afternoon,  May  9th. —  Held  a  meeting  in  Brook- 
lyn at  three  o'clock  ;  not  well  attended ;  at  night  held  a  meet- 
ing in  the  "  Log  Cabin,"  Brooklyn. 

This  was  the  remains  of  the  "  log  cabin  "  and  "  hard 
cider  "  enthusiasm  which  had  so  lately  swept  over  the 
country. 

Sunday  morning,  10th. — At  8  o'clock  held  a  meeting  in  the 
Methodist  Church,  Brooklyn.  At  ten  held  a  meeting  on 
board  the  steamship  Fulton;  eighteen  seamen  signed  the 
pledge.  In  the  afternoon  met  the  children  in  the  Sunday 
school  of  Mr.  Spencer's  church.  Sunday  night  addressed  a 
large  congregation  in  Rev.  Mr.  Spencer's  church. 

Monday. —  Addressed,  at  3  P.M.,  a  large  congregation  in 
the  Free  Church ;  at  night  addressed  a  very  large  congrega- 
tion in  the  "  Log  Cabin." 

Tuesday,  12th. — Held  a  meeting  in  Allen  Street. 

Wednesday,  13th. —  Addressed  the  hatters  in  Columbian 
Hall ;  same  evening  addressed  a  meeting  in  Pearl  Street,  near 
Broadway. 

Thursday,  14dh. —  Addressed  the  Young  Men's  National 
Temperance  Convention,  which  had  been  holding  meetings  in 
the  city.  Held  a  meeting  in  Carmine-Street  Church  ;  eighty 
signed  the  pledge. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  101 

Friday,  6  A.M. —  Left  New  York  for  Baltimore  ;  arrived 
in  Philadelphia  at  1  P.M.  I  was  arrested  on  the  wharf  by  a 
constable  for  an  old  grog-bill,  which  I  paid,  but  was  detained 
by  it  until  next  day.*  Left  Philadelphia  Saturday  morning,  at 
7£  A.M.  ;  reached  Baltimore  in  the  afternoon  ;  found  my  fam- 
ily well. 

*  The  New- York  Organ  for  June,  1841,  thus  referred  to  the  incident : 
"  After  Mr.  Hawkins  left  this  city  on  his  way  to  Baltimore,  some  weeks 
ago,  as  lie  was  standing  on  the  wharf  at  Philadelphia  with  a  number  of 
friends,  waiting  for  the  boat  to  start,  he  saw  a  person  who  seemed  to 
watch  him  very  closely.  It  seemed  that  he  had  seen  him  somewhere  be- 
fore, but  couldn't  for  his  life  bring  to  mind  where,  but  thought  he  had 
been  an  old  bottle  companion.  They  stood  watching  each  other  until  the 
boat  was  nearly  ready  to  start,  and  as  Mr.  Hawkins  was  about  to  go  on 
board,  he  was  in  the  gentlest  manner  possible  tapped  on  the  shoulder  by 
his  unrecognized  friend,  who  very  politely  informed  him  that  he  was  his 
prisoner.  '  What !'  exclaimed  the  astonished  Hawkins:  'what  do  you 
nier.n  ?  '  -  -  '  Mean  ?  '  says  the  stranger,  '  I  mean  what  I  say ;  you're  my 
prisoner.'  — '  Where  is  your  authority  ? '  demanded  Hawkins.  —  '  Here,' 
returned  the  other;  sure  enough,  pulling  out  a  warrant,  which  proved  to 
!»•  for  an  old  grog-bill,  incurred  years  ago,  and  which  since  his  reforma- 
tion he  had  frequently  sought  to  find  the  man  for  the  purpose  of  settling, 
but  had  been  informed  that  he  had  given  up  business,  and  was  unable  to 
get  a  clue  to  his  whereabouts.  Hawkins  offered  the  money  but  was  re- 
fused ;  'twas  too  good  a  joke  to  arrest  this  apostle  of  temperance  for  a 
grog-bill.  Hawkins  remonstrated ;  stated  how  anxious  he  was  to  get  to 
his  family  ;  but  it  was  no  use ;  — before  a  magistrate  he  must  go.  This 
was  an  awkward  fix.  One  spell  he  had  a  notion  to  get  angry,  but  he 
thought  it  would  be  too  good  a  text  to  preach  temperance  from,  so  like  a 
good  citizen  he  '  yielded  to  the  majesty  of  the  law,'  and  accompanied  the 
man  to  the  police  office,  where  he  planked  down  the  ready  and  was  dis- 
charged. Now  we  would  advise  every  man  who  has  any  old  grog  scoscs 
standing  against  him  to  go  right  off  and  square  them  up." 
9* 


CHAPTER    X. 

"And  when  the  triumph  comes  —  as  come  it  will, 
When  baffled  flies  the  Demon  of  the  still, 
And  heaven-born  Temperance  pours  o'er  every  land, 
Her  richest  blessings  with  a  liberal  hand  ; 
Thy  prayers  and  tears  and  toils  to  haste  the  day, 
When  all  may  joy  in  her  benignant  sway, 
Kemembered  still,  shall  oft  recounted  be, 
And  glad  thanksgivings  shall  be  poured  for  thee  !  " 

THE  rapidity  with  which  the  temperance  reform  was 
progressing  through  the  land,  was  arresting  the  atten- 
tion of  all  classes.  Thousands  of  degraded  men  were 
leaving  the  haunts  of  vice ;  thousands  of  families  were 
revisited  with  the  blessings  of  peace  and  sobriety.  In 
many  instances  liquor  dealers  were  induced  to  give  up 
their  business,  and  the  contents  of  their  barrels  were 
burned  amidst  the  shouts  of  the  multitudes,  now  disen- 
thralled. City  governments  were  beginning  to  rejoice 
at  their  diminishing  expenditures,  and  the  hearts  of  all 
true  philanthropists  were  filled  with  joy.  The  hearts 
of  old  temperance-men  were  rejoicing  at  the  powerful 
instrumentalities  now  placed  in  their  hands.  The  old 
temperance  pledge,  which  admitted  the  use  of  "  wine 
and  cider,"  was  numbered  among  the  "things  that 
were."  Doubting  physiologists  were  convinced  that 
all  intoxicating  beverages  might  be  abandoned,  and 
the  human  system  suffer  no  evil.  The  army  of  total- 
abstinence  men,  putting  on  all  the  freshness  and  vigor 
of  youth,  constituted  an  argument  that  could  not  be 

(102! 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS.  103 

resisted.  Instead  of  being  still  the  despised  and  neg- 
lected of  all,  these  reformed  inebriates  became  the 
champions  and  missionaries  to  their  brethren  in  bonds. 

The  fifth  anniversary  of  the  American  Temperance 
Union  was  held  on  the  llth  of  May,  1841,  under  the 
most  encouraging  circumstances.  Its  friends  were 
found  among  the  most  distinguished  of  the  land. 
"  Never  before,"  said  its  honored  secretary,  Rev.  John 
Marsh,  «  have  the  committee  come  up  to  the  anniver- 
sary of  the  Temperance  Union  with  such  cause  for 
gratitude  and  praise.  The  Almighty  Ruler  of  the 
universe,  who  will  overturn  and  overturn  and  over- 
turn, until  every  knee  shall  bow,  seems  to  have  taken 
the  enterprise  in  which  we  are  engaged  into  his  own 
hands,  and  to  have  given  it  an  impulse  in  the  past  year, 
wholly  unlocked  for  by  its  warmest  advocates.  We 
are  nothing.  Human  thought  stretched  not  to  what 
has  been  accomplished.  Human  action  would  have 
stamped  it  as  folly,  had  it  labored  to  do  it.  God  de- 
vised, and  God  executed.  We  look  and  we  adore." 

After  glancing  at  the  results  accomplished  by  Father 
Matthew  in  Ireland,  at  the  successful  tour  of  Rev. 
Robert  Baird  in  the  north  of  Europe,  the  report  thus 
speaks  of  the  American  movement. 

In  the  city  of  Baltimore,  without  any  special  agency  ex- 
cepting their  action  one  upon  another,  more  than  a  thousand 
reformed  drunkards  stand  upon  their  feet,  and  walk  forth  erect 
in  the  conscious  dignity  of  freemen.  Several  of  these  individ- 
uals, long  deceived,  robbed,  beaten,  tossed  by  friends,  suffering 

»  O 

the  horrors  of  the  pit,  now  plucked  from  the  burning,  joyful  in 

tli'-ii-  deliverance,  affected  to  tears  at  what  they  have  been  and 

\\ln-iv  they  have    been,  yl  willing  to  acknowledge  nil  and  con- 

•'I,  and  desi.-ous  of  raising  every  inebriate  from  degrada- 


104  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

tion  and  ruin,  have  visited  sister  cities,  and  by  telling  to  crowded 
houses  their  simple  tale,  have  waked  up  this  great  community 
to  the  practicability  and  possibility  of  the  drunkard's  reform, 
and  arrested  many  a  miserable  man,  who  was  abandoned  by  his 
friends  to  hopeless  ruin.  Already,  in  New  York  more  than 
four  hundred,  and  in  Boston  more  than  five  hundred  and  fifty 
have  signed  the  pledge  of  total  abstinence. 

It  is  not,  perhaps,  too  much  to  say  that  in  the  United  States, 
in  the  last  six  months,  fifteen  thousand  drunkards  have  ceased 
using  intoxicating  drinks.  The  physiologist  has  been  con- 
founded, the  caviller  silenced,  the  fearful  shamed,  the  distiller 
and  vender  struck  dumb,  and  a  tide  of  unlooked-for  blessings 
has  been  poured  into  the  bosoms  of  many  miserable  families. 

Addresses  were  made  at  this  meeting  by  Dr.  Charles 
Jewett,  of  Mass.,  Prof.  Goodrich,  of  Yale  Theological 
Seminary,  Rev.  Mr.  Scott,  of  Stockholm,  in  Sweden, 
Rev.  Robert  Baird,  who  had  visited  several  of  the 
courts  of  Europe  and  received  the  favorable  expres- 
sions of  their  monarchs  on  this  subject,  Rev.  Mr.  Bing- 
ham,  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  John  Hawkins,  of 
Baltimore.* 

The  new  principle  of  love  to  the  fallen,  which  Mr. 
Hawkins  had  promulgated  in  Boston,  took  a  deep  hold 
upon  the  people ;  the  more  it  was  revolved  in  their 
minds,  the  deeper  became  the  conviction  that  hitherto 
a  great  mistake  had  been  made  ;  that  instead  of  impris- 
onment and  correction,  the  mild  persuasions  of  love 
should  be  employed  to  win  him  from  ruinous  indul- 
gences. This  power  melted  and  subdued  his  heart ; 
correction  soured,  and  blunted  his  sensibilities. 

The  new  society  in  Boston  rapidly  increased,  and 
before  Mr.  Hawkins'  return  from  Baltimore  it  rmm- 

*  See  Boston  Journal,  May  13,  1841. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  105 

bered  upwards  of  eleven  hundred.  While  they  were 
counselled  to  be  unremitting  in  their  attentions  to  one 
another,  they  were  reminded  of  their  duty  to  remember 
those  who  were  yet  in  bonds.  The  long-tried  friends  of 
temperance  were  advised  to  improve  every  opportunity 
of  encouraging  those  who  were  entering  on  a  new  course 
of  life,  and  to  evince  their  kindness  and  regard  in  every 
suitable  manner.  Should  the  work  go  on  as  prosper- 
ously as  there  was  reason  to  believe  it  would,  it  was 
hoped  that  although  there  might  be  a  decline  of  busi- 
ness in  the  court-house,  and  many  vacant  cells  in  the 
House  of  Correction  and  State  Prison,  the  fireside  of 
many  a  domestic  circle  which  had  been  lonely  and 
desolate  would  again  present  a  cheerful  aspect.* 

These  principles  are  distinctly  and  forcibly  enunci- 
ated in  the  following  letter  to  the  writer  of  these  pages 
from  Dr.  Walter  Channing;  the  brief  resume  which  it 
gives  of  the  state  of  the  cause  at  the  time  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins came  to  Boston  on  his  first  visit,  makes  it  a  valua- 
ble addition  to  this  memoir :  — 

BOSTON,  September  25,  1858. 

REV.  W.  G.  HAWKINS:  Dear  Sir,  —  The  Massachusetts 
Temperance  Society,  one  of  the  earliest  organizations  for  pro- 
moting temperance,  had  faithfully  labored  for  this  object.  Its' 
constitution  declared  that  this  was  to  be  accomplished  by  check- 
ing the  too  free  use  of  intoxicating  liquors,  which  threatened 
to  make  us  a  nation  of  drunkards. 

The  first  President  of  the  society  was  Samuel  Dexter,  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  jurists  in  the  land,  and  holding  some 
of  the  most  important  offices  in  the  republic.  Its  next  Pres- 
ident was  Nathan  Dane,  the  author  of  the  Ordinance  which 
declared  the  great  Western  Territory  forever  free.  The  so- 

*  See  Boston  Journal,  May  21,  1841. 


106 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.   HAWKINS. 


ciety  had  no  pledge,  and  obtained  no  aid  from  public  laws, 
t  had  a  large  number  of  members  from  among  our  ranks, 
and  a  faithful  agent;    its  Recording  Secretary  was  the  late' 
Dr.  J.  G.  Stephenson,  whom  I  never  name  without  remem- 
brance and  record  of  the  public  and  private  respect  and  affec- 
tion in  which  he  was  held.     Dr.  Stephenson  was  obliged  by 
dining  health  to  resign  his  office,  and  I  was  appointed  in 
is  stead.     The  society  continued  its  labors.     Other  societies 
were  formed.     The  public,  especially  the  churches,  began  to 
1   and   express  an   interest  in   the  work.      New   societies 
adopted  the  pledge.     There  was  doubtless  good  done      Pro- 
•ess  was  slow.     With  the  increase  in  numbers  and  in  wealth 
the  manufacture  and  sale  of  intoxicating  drinks  were  increased! 
traffic  was  protected  by  license  laws,  which,  although  de- 
signed to  check  an  immoral  and  destructive  custom,  gave  it 
direct  patronage.     The  right  to  sell  could  be  procured  with 
i  very  small  sum.     How  small  was  the  gain  to  the  public 
treasury  by  this  purchase  money,  when  compared  with  its  ex- 
penditure to  support  the  intemperance  which  the  license  system 
produced!     The  general  government  paid  a  bounty  for  the 
export  of  New-England  rum,  and  thus  was  the  patron  of  its 
distillation. 

It  was  in  this  state  of  things  the  «  Washingtonian  Movement " 
so  called,  was  made.  It  began  in  Baltimore,  and  by  the  direct 
agency  of  drunkards.  I  need  not  give  an  account  of  the  cir- 
cumstances under  which  this  movement  began,  for  you  have  in 
your  possession  its  whole  history.  Sufficient  for  me  is  it  to  say 
that  your  father  was  one  of  its  authors,  and  that  we  both  know 
with  what  heroic  fidelity  he  continued  in  its  service  till  his 
death. 

It  was  wholly  new,  both  in  its  principles  and  its  agents.     It 
i  aside  law  punishment,  and  made  love,  the  new  command- 
ment its  own.     It  dared  to  look  upon  moral  power  as  sufficient 
for  the  work  of  human  regeneration  -  the  living  moral  power 
m  the  drunkard,  however  degraded  he  might  be.     It  had  faith 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  107 

in  man ;  and  with  this  principle  in  action,  it  regarded  success 
as  certain.  The  drunkard  became  a  moral  teacher.  Yes ;  he 
who  had  lived  in  daily  violation  of  the  paramount  principle  in 
the  constitution  of  human  nature,  felt  that  he  was  yet  a  MAN  ; 
and  in  virtue  of  his  divine  investiture  as  a  moral  being,  he  rose 
from  the  lowest  depths  of  degradation,  and  became  an  apostle 
of  the  highest  sentiment  in  his  nature ;  viz.,  the  love  of  man, 
the  acknowledgment  of  the  inborn  dignity  of  man. 

You  know  how  this  announcement  of  individual  conversion 
to  truth,  and  from  a  source  never  looked  to  before,  was  received. 
It  attracted  universal  and  deep  attention.  Those  Baltimore 
meetings  were  published  throughout  the  land,  and  soon  were 
heard  of  abroad.  Drunkards  were  now  the  teachers  of  tem- 
perance !  They  came  before  the  people  with  the  story  of  their 
wrongs;  how  they  had  wronged  their  own  souls,  and  their 
"  living  temples,"  their  bodies ;  how  they  had  made  their  homes 
desolate,  —  their  wives  widows  with  living  husbands,  their 
children  orphans  with  living  fathers.  These  men  (for  such 
again  they  were),  told  of  their  sins,  their  crimes,  making  the 
nation  —  the  world,  their  confessional ! 

Your  father  came  to  Boston.  I  remember  —  I  can  never 
for(ret — the  welcome  he  received  at  the  meeting  in  Faneuil 

O 

Hall,  by  the  multitude  who  met  him  there.  He  told  his  story 
with  the  eloquence  of  personal  experience,  and  with  the  sim- 
plicity of  truth.  You  felt  that  you  was  in  the  presence  of  a 
brother  —  of  a  man.  Your  heart  sunk  within  you  as  you  lis- 
tened to  the  story  of  a  terrible  delinquency.  How  did  it  swell 
with  joy  at  his  power,  and  his  victory,  when  he  told  you  of  his 
moral  resurrection.  Whose  eyes  were  dry  in  that  great  assem- 
bly, when  he  told  us  of  the  long  night-watchings  of  that  little 
•laid  —  his  daughter,  —  for  him,  her  wretched  father,  and  that 
she  was  his  deliverer  ! 

A  result  of  your  father's  visit  to  Boston,  was  the  formation 
of  a  Washingtonian  Temperance  Society,  upon  the  same  plat- 
form as  that  of  Baltimore.  Samuel  F.  Holbrook  was  chosen 


108  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

President,  and  I  was  appointed  Treasurer.  Its  success  was 
great ;  money  was  needed*  and  was  asked  for ;  the  appeal  was 
answered,  and  several  thousand  dollars  were  contributed.  It 
came  in  various  sums,  from  two  hundred  dollars  to  six  and  a 
quarter  cents ;  the  old  and  the  young,  the  poor  and  the  rich, 

—  all  classes  gave.     It  was  of  the  widow's  mite,  and  of  the 
rich  man's  wealth.     I  could  relate  touching  incidents  of  giving, 
for  it  often  involved  sacrifices  where  it  seemed  that  self-denial 
could  no  farther  go.     They  came  to  give,  and  claimed  the  priv- 
ilege to  help  such  a  work. 

But  why  money  ?  Intemperance,  while  it  produces  the  se- 
verest want,  deprives  it  for  a  time  of  much  of  its  suffering.  To 
cease  to  be  drunk  is  to  feel  the  whole  misery  of  a  drunkard's  lot, 

—  he  has  no  friends,  no  work,  it  may  be,  no  home.    Let  such  a 
man  resolve  on  a  better  life,  you  must  stand  by  him  lest  he  fall ; 
you  must  feed  and  shelter  him  till  he  has  fully  come  to  himself, 

—  you  must  give,  or  get  him  work.     Money  here  was  raised 
to  help  such  men.     To  provide  for  them  shelter,  food,  clothing. 
Much  money  was  collected,  and  in  the  distribution  of  it  those 
men  were  employed  who  had  known  the  claims,  the  wants  of 
the  reformed. 

You  know  that  questions  have  been  asked  as  to  the  expedi- 
ency of  the  intemperate  appealing  to  the  public,  in  the  way  of 
relating  experiences,  revealing  their  delinquencies,  sins,  crimes, 
in  public  assemblies.  It  is  bad  taste  we  are  told ;  it  comes  of 
some  form  of  vanity ;  it  is  very  apt  to  be  exaggerated,  on  the 
ground  that  the  greater  the  crime  the  more  merit  in  the  reform- 
ation ;  it  may  be  done  to  make  money,  and  the  imagination 
may  be  taxed  to  make  the  confession  more  telling.  We  hear 
all  sorts  of  objections  made  to  this  feature  of  the  Washingtonian 
movement,  as  you  doubtless  know.  I  do  not  mean  to  argue 
these  points,  but  I  will  say  to  you,  that  I  have  known  no  genu- 
ine, true  member  of  this  body,  who  has  ever  for  a  moment  led 
me  to  question  his  sincerity.  There  may  have  been,  and  there 
may  be,  men  who  have  entered  into  the  public  service  for 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  109 

lucre  ;  but  I  have  known  no  such  hypocritical  disciples  in  this 
great  work,  and  trust  I  never  may.  Many  may  have  fallen 
from  their  pledge,  and  denied  the  faith ;  they  have  been  tempted 
beyond  their  strength  and  have  fallen. 

I  turn  from  the  proper  object  of  my  note,  to  speak  again  of 
your  father,  to  whom  every  lover  of  man  owes  the  deepest  ob- 
ligations, and,  for  one,  to  offer  my  sincere  thanks  for  his  impor- 
tant services.  I  can  never  forget  the  earnestness,  the  sim- 
plicity, the  humbleness,  with  which  he  declared  his  obligations 
to  that  cause  which  had  saved  him  from  terrible  self-murder, 
and  had  enabled  him  to  resist  a  temptation  to  which  habit  had 
given  strength,  leaving  only  moral  weakness  which  is  of  all 
things  most  fatal  to  successful  resistance  of  temptation.  IJelt 
sure  that  he  would  stand.  I  felt  sure  that  with  his  honest  elo- 
quence he  would  win  hosts  of  men  to  his  doctrine  and  to  his 
practice.  And  having  done  all,  he  did  stand.  He  worked  for 
his  brothers  to  the  last  day  of  his  life,  and  hi  peace  passed  away. 

I  thank  you  for  calling  on  me,  and  only  regret  that  in  com- 
plying with  your  request,  to  write  you  concerning  my  impres- 
sions of  your  father,  and  of  his  visit  to  Boston,  I  have  so  im- 
perfectly done  what  I  promised  to  do.  I  rejoice  to  hear  from 
you  that  you  are  preparing  a  memoir  of  him.  If  this  note  will 
serve  you,  I  place  it  entirely  at  your  service.  If  you  have  any 
questions  which  I  can  answer  let  me  have  them,  and  I  will  do 
what  I  can  to  answer  them. 

I  remain,  very  truly  yours, 

WALTER  CHANNING. 

Mr.  Hawkins  remained  but  a  short  time  in  Balti- 
more, seven  days  only,  making  brief  visits  to  his  mother 
and  to  his  numerous  relatives,  detailing  to  them  inci- 
dents in  the  astonishing  reformation  at  the  North.  We 
continue  our  extracts  from  his  journal. 

The  Boston  Temperance  Society  having  engaged  my  ser- 
10 


110  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

vices  on  a  mission  of  Temperance,  I  accordingly  gathered  my 
family  together,  [consisting  of  his  wife,  his  daughter  Hannah, 
and  two  orphan  children,  a  nephew  and  niece  of  his  will.',  hi? 
daughter  Elizabeth  being  then  with  her  grandmother,  and  his 
son  learning  the  business  of  a  grocer  in  his  uncle's  store]  and 
left  Baltimore  at  3  P.M.,  for  Boston,  on  Friday,  May  21st ; 
reached  Philadelphia  at  eleven  o'clock  at  night.  Left  next 
morning,  7  A.M.,  reached  New  York  at  2£.P.M. ;  was  kindly  in- 
vited to  make  our  stay  with  Mr.  Asa  Bigelow. 

Sunday  afternoon,  23d. —  Lectured  in  Sullivan-Street 
Church.  Sunday  night  lectured  in  Methodist  Protestant 
Church,  Attorney  Street. 

Monday,  2<lth. —  Met  the  Washington  Temperance  Society; 
an  interesting  meeting. 

Tuesday,  25th.  —  Left  New  York  for  Middletown,  Ct.,  in 
company  with  Rev.  John  Marsh ;  lectured  at  night. 

It  is  to  this  journey,  without  doubt,  that  Dr.  Marsh 
refers  in  the  little  volume  entitled  "  Hannah  Hawkins, 
the  Reformed  Drunkard's  Daughter."  This  little  work, 
though  defective  in  some  of  its  statements,  is  neverthe- 
less admirably  written,  and  calculated  to  do  much  good ; 
we  learn  that  sixteen  thousand  copies  have  already  been 
distributed  through  the  country. 

Wednesday,  26th  May.  —  Left  Middletown  for  Hartford, 
Ct. ;  lectured  same  evening  in  Rev.  Dr.  Hawes'  church. 

Thursday,  27th.  —  Afternoon,  lectured  in  the  session-room  of 
same  church,  and  at  night  in  the  Town  Hall.  Friday,  lectured 
again  in  the  Town  Hall. 

We  learn  from  the  Hartford  papers  of  that  day,  that 
the  Washington  Temperance  Society  of  that  city  was 
founded  by  John  Hawkins  the  last  of  May,  that  it 
speedily  increased  to  one  hundred  in  number,  embracing 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  Ill 

many  who,  a  month  before,  were  miserable  inebriates. 
The  young  men  were  also  stimulated  during  that  month 
to  the  organization  of  a  large  and  efficient  society  on 
total-abstinence  principles ;  it  soon  numbered  over 
eight  hundred  members ;  such  an  onward  movement  in 
the  cause  of  temperance  was  never  before  known  in 
that  city. 

Saturday,  May  2Sth.  —  Reached  Springfield  at  7  P.M.,  and 
lectured  same  evening  hi  the  Presbyterian  church.  On  Sunday 
afternoon,  30th,  addressed  an  interesting  congregation  of  chil- 
dren, with  their  parents ;  much  interest  felt ;  and  at  night 
addressed  a  large  congregation  in  the  same  church. 

Monday,  May  31. —  Arrived  in  Boston  with  my  family,  and 
took  boarding  at  the  National  Temperance  Hotel,  kept  by  Mr. 
Louis  Boutelle. 

During  the  late  extraordinary  movements  in  Boston, 
Mr.  Boutelle,  the  keeper  of  this  hotel,  became  so  impressed 
with  the  evils  of  keeping  intoxicating  liquor  in  a  pub- 
lic house,  as  to  come  to  the  conclusion  to  banish  it  at 
once  and  forever  from  his  premises.  Mr.  Hawkins  took 
much  interest  in  sustaining  so  laudable  an  enterprise 
and  wherever  he  lectured  commended  the  example  to 
others.  Mr.  Boutelle  addressed  a  most  sensible  letter  to 
S.  F.  Holbrook,  President  of  the  Washington  Temper- 
ance Society,  in  which  he  gave  it  as  his  opinion,  as  a 
vender  of  intoxicating  drinks,  "  that  this  was  the  jirst 
time  intemperance  had  ever  been  attacked  in  the  right 
win/."  Mr.  Boutelle  was  not  neglected  in  his  under- 
taking, but  was  for  years  nobly  sustained  by  the  friends 
of  the  cause. 

The  rapidity  of  the  new  reform,  and  the  dignity  and 
nnportanco  which  it  was  now  assuming,  gathering 


112  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

everywhere  to  its  standard  men  of  talent  and  influence, 
was  a  subject  of  daily  remark  in  the  journals  of  that 
period.  * 

The  moral  grandeur  of  the  work  made  a  deep  im- 
pression on  the  public  mind.  Thousands  of  hearts 
beat  in  sympathy  with  the  new  reformers,  and  many 
earnest  prayers  ascended  for  their  ultimate  triumph. 
It  was  -God  who  guided  the  impulses  of  the  people,  and 
led  them  onward  to  the  amazing  conquests  that  have 
been  won  in  eighteen  years  over  this  department  of  the 
"  Kingdom  of  Darkness."  A  very  just  allusion  to  the 
moral  character  of  the  work  we  append  in  a  note  ;  it  is 
a  communication  to  the  Mercantile  Journal  of  May 
28,  1841.  f 

*  (FROM  THE  MERCANTILE  JOURNAL.) 

The  formation  of  this  society  in  this  city  established  a  new  and  im- 
portant era  in  the  history  of  the  temperance  reform.  The  inebriates 
themselves 'are  awakened  to  their  errors,  and  have  embraced  the  great 
work  of  reform.  They  understand  the  whole  nature  of  intemperance  in 
all  its  different  phases ;  they  are  acquainted  with  the  monster  in  every 
shape  which  he  assumes ;  they  know  the  avenues  to  the  drunkard's  heart ; 
they  can  sympathize  with  him  ;  they  can  reason  with  him ;  they  can  con- 
vince him  that  it  is  not  yet  too  late  to  reform  ;  that  by  signing  the  pledge 
of  total  abstinence  from  all  that  intoxicates,  he  may  yet  become  a  respect- 
able member  of  society,  and  peace  and  prosperity  may  again  visit  his 
dwelling,  and  happiness  take  up  her  abode  in  his  heart.  This  society 
numbers  now  nearly  twelve  hundred  persons,  and  the  numbers  are  daily 
increasing.  Among  them  are  men  of  talent  and  energy  of  character,  who 
are  deeply  interested  in  extending  the  great  principles  of  the  temperance 
reform.  —  May  27,  1841. 

t  Mu.  SLEEPER,  —  I  wonder  with  rejoicing  at  the  developments  which 
are  now  making  in  the  temperance  reform  among  the  drunkards  of  our 
city  and^  in  various  parts  of  our  country.  There  is  a  new  principle  in 
.his  movement,  which  should  inspire  hope  for  the  friends  of  man,  of  man 
degraded  by  intemperance  and  vice  ;  new  tongues  in  ihis  resurrection. 
"  Hear  we  not,"  says  the  drunkard,  "every  one  speak  in  our  own  Ian- 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  113 

The  arrival  of  Mr.  Hawkins  in  Boston  with  a  portion 
of  his  family  on  the  31st  of  May  was  immediately 
announced  in  the  newspapers.  "  We  are  requested," 
says  the  Mercantile  Journal,  « to  state  that  there  will  be 
a  public  meeting  of  the  Washington  Total- Abstinence 
Society,  at  the  Marlboro'  Chapel,  this  evening.  Mr. 
Hawkins  has  reached  this  city  to-day,  last  from  Spring- 
field, with  his  family,  and  will  be  present  at  the  meet- 
ing and  address  the  audience." 

Of  this  meeting  Mr.  Hawkins  makes  this  brief 
record  in  his  journal :  "  Met  the  Washington  Temper- 
ance Society  in  Marlboro'  Chapel ;  it  was  an  interest- 
ing meeting."  Its  modesty  is  worthy  of  .note.  The 
Mercantile  Journal  of  June  1,  1841,  says  : 

guage  ?  "  The  voice  of  the  drunkard  comes  home  to  those  of  his  own 
class.  Their  inmost  experience  makes  them  one  soul.  The  good  can 
only  speak  to  the  degraded  in  any  form  of  vice  by  uniting  with  the  good 
yet  left  in  them.  The  most  degraded  man  living  is  our  brother.  Our 
souls  should  vibrate  in  unison  with  the  sublime  sentiment  of  Hawkins, 
one  of  the  reformed  drunkards;  "I'll  never  slight  a  drunkard  as  long 
as  I  live."  No  !  nor  slight  any  man,  however  degraded  by  any  form  of 


vice. 


It  is  not  the  least  advantage  growing  out  of  the  new  aspect  of  tho 
temperance  reform,  that  it  creates  a  noble  and  God-like  sympathy  for 
that  class  of  men  whom  Hawkins  represented  when  ho  said,  "  Not  a 
to  take  me  by  the  hand,  and  lead  or  help  me  along,  and  say,  '  You  can  free 
yourself  from  intemperance  and  vice.' "  Wo  must  seek  a  fellowship  <.\  iih 
the  intemperate  in  our  lanes  and  cellars,  even  in  the  very  glitters  of  our 
,  if  we  would  save  them  from  the  ruin  that  must,  otherwise  n)ino 
upon  them.  Brother-like  we  must  take  them  by  the  hand,  and  lead  them 
forth  from  the  ceDars  of  their  degradation  into  the  dear  air  and  hri-ht 
i-ht  of  heaven.  "  Is  this  not  the  carpenter's  son  !  "  What  eloquence  (Yom 
iterate  men  !  Lips  parr),,,!  |1V  Intemperance,  quivering  steeped  in  v,  TV 

drath,  now  n.ovin-  in  utterance  of  heroic  wntiments,  full  t.>  overfli 
thdiYine  thoughts  and  gi  I,,  thereformed  dm 

"'"1  "'"1  sublime  suntiim-uls  spri:,-  np  spontaneous,  and  hit    lip    I 
to  the  utter.. 


10* 


114  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

The   Marlboro'   Chapel  was  crowded  to   overflowing   last 
evening  to  welcome  the  return  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  with  his  fam- 
ily.    His  entrance  into  the  hall  was  the  signal  for  acclamations 
which  were  long  and  reiterated.     For  upwards  of  an  hour  he 
enchained  the  attention  of  the  numerous  audience,  while  he 
sketched  the  scenes  through  which  he  had  lately  passed,  and 
recounted  his  labors  in  other  States,  and  gave  cheering  evi- 
dence of  the  progress  of  the  temperance  reform.     His  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  temperance  were  forcible,  and  his  appeals  to 
the  drunkard  to  abandon  his  cups  were  strong  and  affecting. 
On  the  one  hand  he  placed  misery  and  ruin  to  himself  and 
those  whom  he  loved — on  the  other,  health,  competence,  cheer- 
fulness, and  happiness.     He  portrayed  in  strong  and  burning 
characters,  the  cupidity,  the  heartlessness,  the  rapacity  of  the 
dram-seller,  and  described  the  various  lures  to  which  he  was 
wont  to  resort  to  entrap  the  unwary  or  weak-minded  toper, 
when  he  had  once  resolved  to  reform.     His  eloquent  and  im- 
passioned language  must  have  raised  the  blush  of  shame  even 
on  the  face  of  the  dramseller,  if  he  had  been  present.     He 
adduced  some  strong  arguments  to  show  that  the  cause  of  jus- 
tice would  be  better  subserved,  if  the  dram-seller  should  be  sent 
to  the  House  of  Correction,  instead  of  the  miserable  victim, 
the  drunkard ;  and  a  large  portion  of  the  audience  seemed  to 
be  of  his  opinion.     Mr.  Hawkins  is  a  very  effective  speaker  ; 
few  men  possess  the  power  in  a  greater  degree  of  deeply  inter- 
esting an  audience  ;  and  the  reason  is  plain  —  he  speaks  from 
the  fullness  of  the  heart.     He  describes  what  he  knows,  what 
he  has  seen,  what  he  has  felt,  and  his  audience  are  convinced 
that  he  is  sincere  in  what  he  says,  and  his  language  sinks  into 
the  hearts  of  his  hearers.     After  Mr.  Hawkins  concluded  his 
remarks,    Mr.   Holbrook,  the    President  of   the   Washington 
Total-Abstinence  Society, addressed  the  meeting  in  his  straight- 
forward, animated  style,  and  clinched  the  nail  which  Mr.  Ha\s  k- 
ins  had  driven.     He  told  us  that  a  cab  Avould  be  sent  to  the 
House  of  Correction  this  morning,  to  receive  some  offenders 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  115 

whose  term  of  imprisonment  had  expired,  and  who  were  desir- 
ous of  enrolling  themselves  among  the  members  of  the  society. 
In  this  way  he  hoped  to  put  an  effectual  check  to  intemperance 
and  crime.  Another  public  meeting,  called  by  the  Boston 
Temperance  Society,  will  be  held  at  the  chapel  on  Wednesday 
evening  next,  when  Mr.  Hawkins  will  again  address  the  audi- 
ence, and  a  collection  will  be  taken  in  aid  of  the  funds  of  the 
society.  "  The  work  goes  bravely  on." 

We  return  to  Mr.  Hawkins'  journal. 

Thursday,  June  3d.  —  Met  the  County  Convention  at  Con- 
cord, Mass. ;  it  was  well  attended ;  about  two  hundred  and 
fifty  delegates  were  present,  besides  others,  especially  ladies, 
who  attended  the  meeting  of  the  convention.  The  proceed- 
ings were  of  the  most  gratifying  character,  and  gave  evidence 
that  a  good  feeling  is  awakened  in  old  Middlesex,  which  augurs 
well  for  temperance.  Samuel  Hoar  presided,  and  addresses 
were  made  by  several  gentlemen  from  the  county ;  and  also 
by  Rev.  John  Pierpont,  Mr.  Crosby,  of  Boston,  Mr.  Parsons, 
of  Salem,  and  by  myself. 

Friday  and  Saturday.  —  Rest. 

Sunday,  June  6th.  —  Lectured  in  Charlestown  to  a  large 
concourse  of  people  ;  great  interest  was  manifested. 

Monday,  7th.—  Lectured  in  Marlboro'  Chapel;  house 
crowded. 

Tuesday,  8th.  —  Lectured  again  in  Charlestown  ;  increasing 
interest. 

Wednesday,  Mi.—  Lectured  in  Chelsea ;  the  people  are  here 
wide  awake  to  the  subject  of  reform. 

Thursday,  10th.  —  Lectured  in  Cambridgeport ;  the  people 
ar<;  aroused  to  the  subject  of  temperance  ;  the  pledge  was  cir- 
culated, and  three  hundred  and  ten  names  obtained. 

Hitherto  we  have  sketched  the  public  life  of  Mr. 


116  LIFE    OP    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Hawkins  as  the  champion  of  the  fallen ;  we  have  seen 
the  estimation  in  which  he  was  held,  and  the  modesty 
with  which  he  received  all  exhibitions  of  public  favor. 
His  interior  life  has  hitherto  been  unwritten  ;  —  this 
can  best  be  learned  from  his  private  correspondence, 
which  he  never  designed  to  meet  the  public  eye.  We 
are  much  mistaken  if  the  admiration  for  his  character 
is  not  much  increased  by  a  perusal  of  these  letters. 
The  Christian  will  certainlv  be  encouraged  and  ani- 

ti  O 

mated  by  the  consideration  that  the  power  upon  which 
he  relied  for  success  was  drawn  from  the  blessed  relig- 
ion of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  In  all  his  sympathy,  in  all 
his  labors  and  self-denials,  he  did  but  follow  in  the  foot- 
steps of  Him  who  was  a  man  of  sorrows  and  ac- 
quainted with  grief.  Jesus  was  sympathetic ;  he  met 
objects  of  compassion  at  the  corner  of  every  street. 
What  would  he  not  do  to  relieve  human  suffering,  — 
what  sacrifice  would  he  not  make  to  wipe  away  the 
tear  of  grief,  to  bind  up  tne  broken  heart!  How 
promptly  did  he  hasten  to  perform  a  good  deed !  "  My 
son  dieth,"  said  a  certain  nobleman."  "  Go  thy  way," 
said  Jesus  unto  him,  "  thy  son  liveth."  How  kindly  he 
bends  over  the  leper,  the  crippled,  the  blind  and  impo- 
tent !  Such,  the  Gospels  inform  us,  was  the  spirit  and 
mind  of  Jesus.  "  Now,  if  any  man  have  not  the  spirit 
of  Christ,  he  is  none  of  his." 

However  nearly  Mr.  Hawkins  may  have  approached 
the  character  of  a  practical  Christian,  it  never  made  him 
proud  or  vain-glorious.  Whatever  he  possessed,  he  as- 
scribed  to  the  grace  and  goodness  of  God. 

BOSTON,  June  10,  1841. 

MY  DEAR  Mo  JUKI;,  SISTERS,  BROTHERS,  SON,  DAUGH- 
TERS, AND  FRIENDS, —  I  thus  head  my  letter  from  the  deep 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  117 

feelings  of  affection  I  have  for  you  all.  For  you,  my  mother, 
when  I  remember,  by  you  I  was  nourished  and  cherished  at  the 
breast,  when  unable  to  help  myself,  and  have  been  the  subject 
of  your  prayers  from  my  birth;  which  you  well  remember. 
But,  mother,  although  you  have  been  praying  for  a  drunken 
son  for  many  years,  your  prayers  have  been  answered,  and  I 
am  now  restored  to  sobriety,  to  my  friends  and  family,  and  to 
the  favor  and  fellowship  of  Him  who  died  that  I  "might 
not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life."  For  years  past  I  did 
not  expect,  when  I  died,  ever  to  meet  you  or  any  of  my  friends 
in  heaven  ;  but  now  my  fears  and  doubts  are  all  gone,  and  I 
have  a  well  grounded  hope  that  when  I  die  I  shall  see  you  at 
God's  right  hand,  "  where  parting  shall  be  no  more." 

My  sisters  and  brothers,  I  love  them  much,  for  they  do  love 
me.  Yes,  they  love  me  more  because  I  have  reformed  my 
life  and  am  trying  to  save  my  soul,  and  doing  all  in  my  power, 
by  the  help  of  God,  to  save  others.  My  children,  I  love  them, 
and  rejoice  that  my  bad  example  did  not  injure  them ;  but  the 
time  has  come,  by  the  providence  of  a  good  God,  that  my  life 
and  death  will  not  bring  disgrace  upon  my  children  and  friends, 
especially  upon  you,  my  dear  mother.  I  know  I  have  given  you 
much  trouble,  trouble  beyond  all  calculation ;  and  I  pray  to 
God,  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart,  that  there  shall  never  be 
another  "  black  sheep  "  in  the  flock,  who  will  bring  disgrace  on 
you,  or  any  of  their  friends. 

Mother,  we  are  all  doing  well,  and  comfortably  situated; 
boarding  at  the  National  Plotel,  a  strictly  temperance  house, 
kept  by  Mr.  Louis  Boutelle  ;  he  is  a  gentleman,  and  his  wilh  is 
a  lady.  We  are  surrounded  by  .good  friends.  I  have  sent  you 
some  papers  showing  the  work  the  committee  has  laid  out  for 
me  this  month.  My  family  go  with  me  to  most  of  the  places ; 
they  are  from  five  to  fifty  miles  from  Boston  ;  all  expenses  paid, 
independent  of  my  salary,  which  is  one  thousand  dollars  per 
year,  besides  the  many  gifts  put  into  our  hands. 

A  miniature  painter  called  on  me,  and  I  am  now  sitting  for 


118  LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS. 

my  likeness ;  I  shall  send  you  all  a  copy.  A  portrait  painter 
has  also  called,  and  I  am  sitting  for  my  portrait,  whieh  is  to  be 
presented  to  the  Washington  Temperance  Society,  of  Boston. 
They  call  me  the  Father  of  the  Society.  The  portrait  is  to  be 
hung  up  in  the  hall  of  the  society.  All  this  is  done  without 
one  cent  of  cost  to  me.  *  *  *  It  is  impossible  lor  me  to 
tell  you  how  high  I  stand  in  the  affections  of  the  people  of  this 
State;  and  not  only  in  this,  but  in  Maine,  Now  Hampshire, 
Vermont,  Connecticut,  and  Rhode  Island.  I  stand  high,  1  know, 
but  my  trust  is  in  God,  and  not  in  tJie  arm  of  flesh.  I  pray 
much  to  God  to  sustain  me.  I  have  established  family  prayers. 
Pray  for  me  that  God  may  keep  me.  I  shall  soon  get  Hannah 
into  one  of  the  best  schools  in  the  city.  My  friends  say  they 
will  make  a  woman  of  her ;  I  know  they  will.  Give  my  love 
to  my  son  William  George.  Mr.  John  Tappan  and  two  or 
three  others  are  beginning  to  ask  me  a  great  many  questions 
about  William,  and  are  much  disposed  to  do  something  for  him 
for  my  sake.  Mother,  I  thank  God  that  there  is  a  good  day 
coming  to  us  all  yet.  I  want  to  see  Elizabeth  very  much,  and 
when  I  send  for  her  don't  refuse  her,  for  I  am  now  about  to  do 
well,  and  wish  to  see  my  children  with  me.  There  will  bo 
some  gentlemen  in  Baltimore  shortly,  from  Boston,  who  will 
tell  you  how  I  am  doing,  better  than  I  can  write.  I  wrote  from 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  but  received  no  answer.  Answer  this 
to  Boston  without  fail. 

Your  son,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

The  following  letter  from  Mr.  Tappan  to  Mrs.  Schaef- 
fer  requires  no  comment :  — 

BOSTON,  Juno  29,  1841. 

MRS.  F.  McC.  SCHAEFFER —  will  without  doubt  bo  grat  iiied 
to  hear  that   her   brother   John   is   doing  much   to   promote 

toinperanee  in  this  State,  and  thai  his  suee.ess  duos  not  ap- 
pear to  have  any  injurious  effect  upon  him.  If  he  can  Tbe 


LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.   W.    HAWK1  HO 

kept  humble,  so  an  to  feel  his  constant  dependence  upon  God, 
he  may  be  the  Jii-trurn'-nt  of  offecting  d  among 

who  were  i  «-<:<:rjtly  in  the  path  to  the  drunkard'-  grave  ;  and  fur 
-hoiald  pray,  as  each  applause  is  dangerous  to 
any  man,  and  especially  to  one  so  situated  as  he  has  been.    At 
<ju<:-t  I  •!:  tracts  to  be  sent  to  you  for  your  distri- 

bution, and  it  will  gratify  me  to  be  informed  if  they,  or  the  former 
i  which  I  gave  him,  have  done  good  in  your  city.     I 
orne  other-,  and  if  you  wish  more  of  any  of  them,  it  will 
Mie  pleasure  to  supply  them  on  addressing  me  through  the 
post-office.  Respectfully  yours, 

JOHN  TAPPAX, 
President  of  the  American  Tract  Society,  Boston. 


CHAPTER    XI. 

"  Hail !  thou  glad,  primeval  glory, 

Beacon  of  the  drunkard's  soul, 
"Watch-light  on  the  lurid  ocean 

Where  the  waves  of  ruin  roll. 
Hail !  thou  Star  of  Temperance,  gleaming 

Through  the  clouded  spirit's  haze, 
And  the  feet  of  Error  guiding 

Into  Wisdom's  pleasant  ways." 

MR.  HAWKINS'  journal  continues  to  furnish  evidence 
of  untiring  industry,  from  the  llth  of  June  to  the  13th 
of  July,  in  lecturing  in  and  about  Boston,  as  often  as 
twice  every  day.  On  the  16th  of  June  he  attended  the 
Essex  County  Convention,  held  at  Lynn.  The  Mer- 
cantile Journal  of  the  17th  of  June,  says : — 

A  meeting  of  the  Essex  County  Temperance  Society  was 
held  at  Lynn  yesterday,  which  was  well  attended  by  delegates 
from  all  parts  of  the  county  of  Essex,  and  from  the  neighbor- 
ing counties.  Rev.  Mr.  Perry,  of  Bradford,  presided,  and  the 
doings  throughout  were  of  the  most  interesting  and  cheering 
character.  In  the  afternoon,  the  children  belonging  to  the 
town,  forming  a  Cold  Water  Army,  numbering  twelve  hundred 
oys  and  girls,  who  had  resolved  never  to  touch  the  intoxicat- 
ing cup,  were  introduced  into  the  gallery  of  the  church.  It 
was  a  glorious  sight,  and  which  will  not  be  soon  forgotten  by 
those  who  witnessed  it.  This  army  was  addressed  by  Samuel 
Hoar,  of  Concord,  by  Moses  Grant,  of  Boston,  and  by  John 
Hawkins,  of  Baltimore.  The  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins  was  one 
of  the  most  truly  eloquent  and  moving  addresses  to  which  we 
ever  listened,  and  appeared  to  make  a  deep  impression  on  the 

(120) 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  121 

minds  of  the  children ;  indeed,  on  the  minds  of  the  whole  audi- 
ence. The  citizens  of  Lynn,  with  a  hospitality  deserving  of 
commendation,  had  kindly  made  arrangements  for  a  collation  at 
the  Town  Hall,  of  which  all  were  invited  to  partake,  when  the 
meeting  adjourned  at  noon,  and  at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 
In  the  mean  time  a  platform  was  erected  on  the  Common,  and 
a!  six  o'clock,  a  large  number  of  people  being  collected,  amount- 
ing to  some  thousands,  the  assembly  was  addressed  by  several 
gentlemen,  and  by  Mr.  Hawkins  in  one  of  his  most  powerful 
and  effective  speeches.  Indeed,  the  proceedings  throughout 
were  of  a  nature  deeply  calculated  to  spread  new  light  on  this 
important  subject  through  the  community ;  to  show  the  par- 
taker of  intoxicating  drinks  the  dangerous  abyss  on  which  he 
i;  standing,  to  convince  the  rum-seller  of  the  iniquity  of  his 
lm>mess,  and  to  infuse  new  energy  and  spirit  into  the  hearts  of 
the  active  friends  of  temperance. 

The  same  paper  of  June  29th,  says :  — 

There  was  a  noble  gathering  of  the  friends  of  temperance 
at  Medford,  yesterday.  At  eleven  o'clock  the  delegates  assem- 
bled in  the  church  ;  prayer  was  offered,  and  the  society  was 
re-organized  for  the  year.  Delegates  attended  from  Middlesex 
and  Suffolk,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  debate.  At  three 
o'clock,  the  church  pews,  aisle,  pulpit,  all  were  crowded  to 
listen  to  a  short  but  very  able  address  from  Dr.  Wyman,  the 
1 'resident  of  the  society  ;  excellent  music  from  the  choir  fol- 
lowed, and  then  John  Hawkins'  unvarnished  tale  of  a  drunk- 
ard's sufferings ;  at  which  not  only  the  tender  female  wept,  but 
the  rugged  farmer,  the  hardy  mechanic,  the  able  lawyer,  the 
learned  divine,  all  sympathized  and  wept  too. 

Throughout  the  country  extensive  preparations  were 
now  being  made  for  the  celebration  of  the  nation's  an- 
niversary, on  total-abstinence  principles.  In  these 
movements  Mr.  Hawkins  was  particularly  active. 


11 


122  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

Speaking  of  the  excessive  labors  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  the 
Rev.  John  Marsh  thus  remarks  in  the  Journal  of  the 
American  Temperance  Union  :  — 

We  are  happy  to  state  that  this  individual,  who  has  for  some 
time  filled  a  large  space  in  the  public  eye,  has  been  received  as 
an  agent  for  the  Massachusetts  Temperance  Society,  and  that 
his  family  have  been  removed  to  Boston,  where  their  latter  end 
will  be  better  than  their  beginning.  On  his  way  with  them 
from  Baltimore  on  the  first  of  June,  Mr.  H.  addressed  large 
assemblies  at  New  York,  Middletown,  Hartford  (where  most 
of  the  Legislature  were  present),  Springfield,  and  Worcester. 
When  he  arrived  at  Boston  an  immense  assembly  convened  at 
the  Marlboro'  Chapel  to  receive  him,  and,  when  he  rose  to 
speak,  we  are  told  the  enthusiasm  of  the  people  beggared  all 
description.  On  the  next  day  we  find  him  at  a  large  county 
meeting  in  Middlesex,  holding  an  immense  audience  at  his  will, 
in  perfect  silence,  in  tears,  or  in  laughter  at  his  sallies  of  wit 
and  humor ;  and  soon  after  at  Concord,  N.  H.,  addressing  the 
Legislature  and  polished  citizens  of  that  place  with  great  power. 
On  the  12th  of  June,  we  find  him  at  Framingham,  where  the 
anniversary  of  his  reform  was  celebrated  by  a  large  number  of 
his  friends,  and  the  15th,  the  anniversary  of  his  signing  the 
pledge  was  celebrated  at  Marlboro'  Chapel,  Boston,  in  a  most 
enthusiastic  meeting.  Scarce  a  day  passes  in  which  he  is  not 
engaged  in  some  large  meeting  in  city  or  country,  giving  his 
own  history  and  the  history  of  every  drunkard,  picturing  tli<> 
work  and  blessedness  of  reform,  the  traffic  in  ardent  spirit  in  all 
its  horrors,  and  the  certain  and  glorious  triumphs  of  temper- 
ance. 

The  fourth  and  fifth  days  of  July,  1841,  should  be 
ever  memorable  in  the  nation's  annals ;  they  constituted 
an  epoch  in  the  history  of  moral  reform,  such  as  neither 
this  nor  any  other  country  had  ever  before  witnessed. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  123 

Over  two  hundred  thousand  ransomed  inebriates  greeted 
with  exulting  hearts  its  coming.  Divines,  philanthro- 
pists, statesmen,  jurists,  physicians,  hailed  its  advent. 
Millions  of  children  —  a  cold  Abater  army  —  marched 
to  pleasant  groves,  with  banners  flying  and  music  play- 
ing, to  assure  their  sires  that  the  next  generation  should 
be  a  generation  of  sober  men  and  women.  A  nation 
but  recently  presenting  the  mournful  spectacle  of  three 
hundred  thousand  of  its  people  in  the  various  stages  of 
drunkenness,  suddenly  arrested  in  its  downward  prog- 
ress, beholds  the  resurrection  of  almost  countless  myr- 
iads, who,  casting  off  the  habiliments  of  mental  and 
moral  degradation,.stand  forth,  the  emancipated  signers 
of  a  "  second  Declaration  of  Independence." 

"  When  and  where,"  says  that  noble  veteran  in  the 
temperance  reform,  Dr.  Marsh,  "was  it  ever  known, 
from  the  rising  to  the  setting  sun,  that  on  a  nation's 
proudest  anniversary,  her  conquest  over  herself  was 
thus  her  greatest  glory.  We  went  forth  in  city  and 
town,  young  men  and  old  men,  matrons  and  virgins, 
by  thousands  and  thousands,  in  songs  and  dances,  to 
say  that  our  self-invoked  chains  were  broken  and  the 
nation  is  free." 

In  New  York  the  joy  of  the  people  was  unbounded. 
An  immense  crowd  filled  the  Broadway  Tabernacle,  to 
listen  to  a  patriotic  oration  from  the  late  Benjamin  F. 
Butler,  Esq.,  in  which  he  alluded  most  appropriately  to 
the  source  of  the  nation's  increased  joy. 

In  Boston,  thousands  upon  thousands  of  "cold- 
water  "  men  and  children  marched  through  the  streets, 
from  old  Faneuil  Hall  to  the  Common,  where,  on  plat- 
forms erected  for  the  purpose,  addresses  were  made  by 
Mr.  Hawkins  and  others.  At  a  later  hour  in  the  day, 


124 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


Temperance  Celebration  on  Bo.-itoii  Common. 


LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  125 

the  members  of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society 
having  accepted  an  invitation  from  Charlestown,  visited 
that  place,  and  in  the  shadow  of  Bunker  Hill  Monu- 
ment were  addressed  by  Mr.  Hawkins.  The  proces- 
sion as  it  moved  through  the  streets  presented  a  most  im- 
posing spectacle  ;  the  "  Cold  Water  Army  "  was  a  host 
of  itself.  "  The  windows,"  says  the  correspondent  of 
the  A.  T.  Union,  "  and  balconies  were  crowded  with 
women 'and  children,  whose  happy  faces  gave  evidence 
of  the  joy  which  filled  their  bosoms,  in  seeing  husbands 
and  fathers,  sons  and  brothers,  enrolled,  a  mighty  army, 
marching  with  firm  step  and  firmer  resolution  to  ex- 
terminate from  our  beloved  country  the  great  cause  of 
misery  and  crime." 

Among  the  speakers  on  the  Common  was  Mr.  Den- 
nis W.  O'Brien,  the  individual  who  at  the  second  address 
of  Mr  Hawkins  in  Faneuil  Hall  proclaimed  from  the 
gallery  his  conversion  to  total-abstinence  principles. 
"  He  spoke,"  says  the  Star,  "  with  great  energy  and  ef- 
fect ;  his  fine,  manly  voice,  with  just  enough  of  Irish 
accent  to  make  it  rich  and  pleasing,  rang  out  clearly, 
and  fell  with  melodious  sounds  on  the  listening  ear." 

When  Mr.  O'Brien  had  concluded,  Mr.  Hawkins 
was  introduced,  and  was  received  by  the  multitude 
with  acclamations.  In  the  course  of  his  remarks  he 
said,  that  this  was  the  second  sober  Fourth  of  July 
he  had  passed  in  twenty  years;  and  so  full  was  his 
heart  with  joy  that  he  had  celebrated  it  three  times 
Ihisycsir;  at  Worcester  and  Brookfield  on  Saturday, 
at  the  Odcon  on  Sunday,  and  here,  this  day,  on  the 
Common. 

A  number  of  songs,  composed  for  the  occasion,  were 
set  to  charming  music;  among  them  the  following:  — 


11* 


126  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

SONG  OF  JOHN  HAWKINS  AND  HIS  COMRADES, 

BT   WM.    B.    TAPPAN. 

Hurrah  !  hurrah !  we've  burst  the  chain 

O  God  !  how  long  it  bound  us  ! 
We  run  !  we  leap !     O  God  again 

Thy  light,  thy  air,  surround  us. 
From  midnight's  dungeon-depths  brought  out, 

We  hail  Hope's  rising  star  ; 
Ho,  comrades,  give  the  stirring  shout, 

Hurrah  !  hurrah !  hurrah ! 

The  world  has  kissed  the  tyrant's  throne, 

The  Beast !  the  Man  of  Sin  ! 
"Legion  !  "  "  Apollyon !  "  better  known 

As  Brandy,  Beer,  or  Gin  ! 
Roused  up  at  Reason's  clarion  cry, 

We  go  to  holy  war, 
To  slay  the  dragon  or  to  die, 

Hurrah !  hurrah !  hurrah ! 

Hurrah !  hurrah  !  there's  joy  within, 

Where  all  before  was  woe, 
And  sunk  is  passion's  dreadful  din, 

And  crushed  for  aye's  the  foe. 
Yet  one  charge  more  in  glorious  strife, 

Stout  hearts  !  to  end  the  war: 
'Tis  done  —  our  spoils !  the  babes  !  the  wife  I 

Hurrah !  hurrah  !  hurrah ! 

Debased  by  drink,  we'd  lost  the  sign 

Of  manhood  God  impressed — 
The  open  face,  the  look  divine  — 

To  show  what  he  had  blessed. 
Behold !  erect,  with  honest  brow, 

Restored  to  Nature's  law, 
We're  men,  we're  men !  heaven  knows  us  now, 

Hurrah  !  hurrah !  hurrah  ! 

Of  ten  men  cleansed  did  one  return 

To  bless  the  healing  hour? 
All  of  our  rescued  thousands  burn 

To  praise  redeeming  power. 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  127 

Come !  bless  God  now !  and  what  for  us 

He's  done  —  so  reads  the  law  — 
WE'LL  DO  FOR  OTHERS  !  and  the  curse 

Root  out  —  hurrah !  hurrah ! 

Tom  Moore  may  drug  the  golden  cup 

With  costly  pearls  that  shine 
Bright  as  his  face,  and  drink  them  up, 

Dissolved  in  rosy  wine ; 
In  undiluted  streams  we  dip 

Our  crystal  glasses ;  nor 
Refuse  the  pledge  will  Woman's  lip, 

Hurrah !  hurrah !  hurrah ! 

Hurrah  !  hurrah !  we've  burst  the  chain ; 

O  God  !  how  long  it  bound  us ! 
We  run !  we  leap  !  O  God,  again 

Thy  light,  thy  air  surround  us. 
From  midnight's  dungeon-depths  brought  out 

We  hail  hope's  rising  star  ; 
Ho,  comrades  !  give  the  stirring  shout, 

Hurrah  !  hurrah !  hurrah ! 

On  the  13th  of  July  Mr.  Hawkins  left  Boston  on  a 
lecturing  tour  "Down  East,"  in  Maine,  from  which 
State  pressing  invitations  had  been  received.  How  he 
was  received,  will  appear  in  the  following  selections 
from  the  many  accounts  published  of  his  efforts  there, 
and  his  encounters  by  the  way.  The  following  was 
communicated  to  the  Mercantile  Journal :  — 

BANGOR,  July  17,  1841. 

MR.  SLEEPER,  —  Mr.  Hawkins  arrived  here  on  Wednesday 
evening,  and  has  been  at  work  ever  since.  He  has  lectured 
four  times  in  this  city,  and  to-day  has  gone  to  Orono,  where  he 
will  lecture  this  evening.  To-morrow  he  will  lecture  at  Old 
Town,  on  Monday  at  Frankfort  and  Hampden,  and  here  again 
on  Tuesday  and  Wednesday.  Applications  for  him  are  re- 
ceived every  day  from  all  quarters,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

such  arrangements  could  not  have  been  made  as  to  allow  of  his 
remaining  longer  with  us.  He  must  come  into  Maine  furain  ; 
1  do  not  know  of  a  State  in  which  he  could  do  more  good.  His 
meetings  have  been  held  in  the  churches,  except  the  last,  which 
was  on  Friday  evening  at  the  City  Hall.  The  galleries  of  this 
building  were  crowded  with  females,  and  the  body  of  the  house 
with  all  kinds  of  the  other  sex.  All  grades,  from  the  lowest 
drunkard  upward,  were  there,  and  such  a  temperance  meeting  I 
never  attended.  Mr.  Hawkins'  speech  was  cheered  from  begin- 
ning to  end.  It  was  one  of  those  happy  efforts  by  which  he 
has  obtained  so  much  celebrity.  He  was  occasionally  inter- 
rupted by  a  quick-witted  inebriate  who  sat  in  a  corner  of  the 
room,  and  he  would  turn  his  sallies  to  so  good  an  account,  that 
the  applause  would  come  down  upon  him  like  a  thunder-clap. 
While  he  was  speaking,  a  man  came  up  and  signed  the  pledge 
under  circumstances  related  in  the  Bangor  Whig  and  Courier 
of  to-day.  It  is  reported,  with  how  much  truth  I  am  not  able 
to  say,  that  after  the  meeting  had  closed,  and  hrfnn;  the  poor 
fellow  had  got  entirely  free  from  the  effects  of  the  liquor  he 
had  drank,  a  miserable  sot-pimp  sought  him  out,  got  him  into 
his  "  hell,"  or  confectionery  as  he  calls  it,  poured  liquor  enough 
down  his  throat  to  get  him  thoroughly  drunk  again,  and  then 
kicked  him  out  of  doors.  If  this  shall  prove  to  be  true,  and  I 
fear  it  will,  the  name  of  the  soulless  scoundrel  will  be  given  to 
the  world,  that  he  may  be  treated  with  the  contempt  he  de- 
serves. After  Mr.  Hawkins  had  concluded,  an  old  man  whose 
head  had  been  visited  by  the  frosts  of  about  seventy  winters, 
arose  and  wished  to  make  some  remarks.  Mr.  Hawkins  <rave 
him  leave.  He  then  commenced  in  a  strain  of  abuse  of  Mr. 
Hawkins.  The  audience  were  so  disgusted  with  this  course, 
that  they  immediately  commenced  hissing  him.  This  was 
promptly  rebuked  by  Mr.  Hawkins. —  "  Fair  play,  fair  play, 
gentlemen ;  that's  the  jewel ! "  The  old  man  went  on.  It  was 
difficult  to  keep  the  audience  quiet.  The  old  man  saw  it,  and 
hastened  to  a  conclusion.  «  I  have  been  invited,"  said  he,  "  by 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINo.  129 

the  best  men  in  this  town  to  sign  the  temperance  pledge,  and  I 
never  would  do  it.  I  consider  myself  a  temperance  man,  and 
I  wouldn't  sign  that  pledge,"  pointing  to  the  Washington  pledge 
which  laid  near  Mr.  H.,  "  for  if  I  did,  I  should  acknowledge 
myself  a  drunkard !  a  drunkard ! "  —  "  Sign  it,  sign  it,"  shouted 
several  persons.  "No,  I'll  not  acknowledge  myself  to  be  a 
drunkard;  every  man  that  signs  that  pledge,  acknowledges 
himself  to  be  a  drunkard.  Yes,  a  drunkard"  Mr.  Hawkins 
could  not  keep  the  people  silent  any  longer,  and  the  confusion 
became  so  great  that  the  old  man  was  glad  to  make  his  escape, 
cursing  this  " temperance  business"  all  the  while,  however. 
This  man  was  no  less  a  personage  than  one  of  the  electors  of 
President  from  this  State  in  1826. 

Mr.  Hawkins  is  busily  engaged  in  Maine  in  awakening  a 
feeling  on  the  subject  of  intemperance.  The  last  number  of 
t!ic  lianyor  Courier  says  that  he  visited  Stillwater  and  Old  Town 
on  Saturday  and  Sunday,  at  which  places  he  addressed  crowded 
assemblies.  The  people  are  awake  there  on  the  subject  of 
temperance,  and  great  good  is  anticipated  to  result  from  the 
labors  of  Mr.  Hawkins.  At  Stillwater  eighty-two  individuals 
came  forward,  and  fifty-four  at  Orono,  and  signed  the  pledge. 

Referring  to  the  above  incident  of  his  venerable  op- 
ponent, Dr.  Marsh  observes  :  "  In  Maine,  John  Hawk- 
ins has  performed  a  triumphant  tour,  obtaining  three 
hundred  and  four  hundred  pledges  in  almost  every 
place  visited.  The  archers  have  shot  at  him,  but  he 
laughs  at  the  shaking  of  their  spear.  He  knows  too 
well  what  he  is  about  to  be  killed  by  friend  or  be,  or 
to  be  tied  up  to  the  will  of  any  individuals." 

On  the  28th  of  July,  1841,  the  State  Temperance 
Convention  assembled  at  Portland,  Maine.  A  deep 
feeling  had  been  awakened  on  the  subject,  and  large 
numbers  were  in  attendance.  During  its  session  Mr. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Hawkins  addressed  the*  assembled  multitude  in  the  fol- 
lowing simple  and  effective  style  :  — 

MR.  CHAIRMAN,  —  It  affords  me  pleasure  and  satisfaction  to 
have  an  opportunity  of  stating  the  progress  of  the  temperance 
reform  in  the  now  happy  city  of  Baltimore.  It  is  truly  aston- 
ishing. When  I  contrast  one  year  ago  with  the  present  condi- 
tion of  that  city,  I  sometimes  wish  I  could  stay  among  them, 
and  look  upon  their  happy  faces.  When  I  think  of  this  I 
scarcely  know  how  to  begin  or  go  on  talking.  Four  thou- 
sand, nearly,  have  been  saved.  On  the  8th  of  April,  one  year 
ago,  six  companions,  greatly  under  the  influence  of  liquor,  not 
influenced  by  any  temperance  men,  talked  over  among  them- 
selves their  misery,  and  by  agreement  one  of  them  made  a 
pledge  to  drink  no  more  intoxicating  drink,  and  they  all  signed 
it.  That  pledge  stands  now,  with  no  alteration,  to  rule  and 
govern  sober  men.  They  met  at  the  chairman's  house,  and 
brought  five  more  with  them,  and  five  more ;  and  soon  after  that 
I  cast  my  lot  among  them.  I  had  refused  before  because  the 
society  were  not  for  total  abstinence.  I  knew  from  experience 
that  nothing  but  total  abstinence  could  prevent  me  from  being 
a  drunkard.  It  was  the  weaker  drinks  that  made  and  kept  me 
a  drunkard.  I  didn't  make  it  known,  because  I  didn't  like  the 
truth.  We  saw  the  gain  in  our  persons  and  in  our  families. 
We  could  sit  under  our  own  vine  and  fig-tree.  We  helped  our 
old  bottle  companions  to  get  up  out  of  the  gutter.  They  came 
timidly,  and  asked,  "  Is  it  possible  that  I  can  quit  drink  without 
being  killed  ?  I  shall  have  fits,  and  delirium  tremens."  But 
they  came ;  and  if  they  fell  we  picked  them  up  again,  until 
they  were  strong  enough  to  go  alone.  In  a  very  short  time 
our  little  band  was  exposed  to  public  scrutiny,  and  people  said, 
"  They  can't  stand  long ;  they  will  soon  go  back  again/'  Good 
men  said  this,  and  temperance  men  said,  "  You  can't  stand." 
But  we  did  stand.  Our  Heavenly  Father's  hand  was  upon  us ; 
he  had  us  under  his  care ;  we  didn't  know  it,  but  when  our 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS.  131 

hearts  swelled  with  gratitude  then  we  knew  it.  I  could  name 
cases,  and  I  will  name  one,  the  worst  we  had.  The  man  scarce 
looked  like  a  human  being ;  he  was  truly  an  object  of  pity. 
His  wife  and  children  were  emaciated  and  crying  for  bread. 
The  children  were  shrivelled  and  drawn  up  like  old  men.  He 
had  a  thing  that  was  once  abed,  but  no  clothing  on  it ;  no  fuel  but 
a  few  shavings.  He  came  and  took  the  pledge,  and  with  a  fal- 
tering tongue.  He  used  to  drive  a  dray  on  shares.  He  went  to 
his  brother  and  was  supplied  with  food  and  clothing,  but  he  didn't 
let  them  have  all  they  wanted.  In  February  he  went  security 
for  a  horse,  and  in  November  it  was  all  paid  for,  his  cellar  was 
filled  with  wood,  he  had  a  barrel  of  flour,  and  a  barrel  of  meat, 
his  wife  and  children  were  well  supplied  with  clothing,  and  he 
had  a  double  suit,  besides  paying  ninety  dollars  of  an  old  grog 
bill ;  and  he  is  a  Christian  too.  He  was  the  last  man  that  I 
shook  hands  with  when  I  left.  He  is  happy,  and  his  wife  and 
children  are  happy  too.  We  have  many  more  in  the  city  of 
Baltimore  like  this ;  but  it  is  not  confined  there.  Several  thou- 
sand have  taken  the  pledge  within  a  few  weeks  in  Boston. 
But  there  .are  human  beings  in  society  that  take  every  means 
to  get  them  drunk  again.  It  seems  cruel  that  when  the  poor 
drunkard  once  gets  up  they  should  attempt  to  ruin  his  charac- 
ter. It  would  be  better  to  rob  and  cut  throats  at  once  than  to 
keep  on  robbing  by  degrees.  Sometime  since  there  appeared 
to  be  a  resting-spcll ;  but  they  have  waked  up  again  with 
renewed  strength  and  vigor.  They  have  nibbed  their  rye-; 
and  crossed  the  Alleghanies  and  gone  further  South.  At  1'iu 
burgh  twelve  hundred  have  reformed. 

Mr.  Chairman,  I  have  heard  it  said  since  I  came  lie  re  that 
the  old  temperance  men  don't  strive  to  save  the  drunkard.  I 
have  said  ever  since  my  reform  that  they  do.  I  know  it.  I 
watched  the  old  temperance  men  ;  I  persecuted  them,  and  !ri«',l 
to  injure  them  in  their  property,  and  took  every  opportunity  to 
do  them  hurt.  I  delighted  in  it.  But  I  had  a  guilty  conscience, 
and  I  look  back  over  fifteen  years  and  see  how  I  fought  against 


132  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

it.  They  strove  to  save  the  drunkard,  but  he  would  kick,  and 
they  were  compelled  to  let  him  alone.  I  saw  in  my  own  heart 
that  they  were  friends,  and  I  was  ashamed,  and  would  go  to 
them  for  two  or  three  months  at  a  time.*  I  remember  when 
they  said,  "  Let  the  poor  drunkard  alone,"  and  I  felt  it,  if  other 
drunkards  didn't ;  I  felt  sorry ;  and  I  feel  it  my  duty  to  make 
these  acknowledgments.  I  am  sorry  to  hear  it  said  that  old 
temperance  men  didn't  do  this,  that,  and  the  other ;  they  did  all 
they  could.  It  is  true  the  poor  drunkard  knew  nowhere  to 
look  for  help.  The  rum-sellers  knew  this,  and  if  they  can  get 
but  one  little  drop  down  his  throat  he  is  gone.  Are  they  sensi- 
ble of  the  guilt  of  this  ?  I  cannot  conceive  what  can  induce 
them  to  sell  spirits  ;  it  is  worse  than  robbing.  I  know  not  the 
feeling  of  this  community  on  this  subject,  but  I  know  mine  is 
the  strongest  indignation.  But  I  must  close.  God  is  forever 
on  our  side.  He  has  blessings  yet  in  store  for  us,  and  this 
country,  called  the  land  of  freedom,  will  yet  be  free. 

While  Mr.  Hawkins  was  unrelaxing  irr  his  efforts 
and  sympathy  to  save  the  drunkard,  he  began  to  dis- 
cover that  the  efforts  of  the  friends  of  temperance 
would  prove  in  a  great  degree  unavailing,  while  the 
manufacture  and  sale  of  intoxicating  drinks  continued. 
He  began,  therefore,  to  fortify  himself  with  facts,  and 
soon  directed  the  whole  power  of  his  indignation  and 
sarcasm  against  the  making  and  vending  of  them. 
His  humble  instrumentality  in  stirring  up  public  opin- 
ion on  this  subject  has  perhaps  never  been  fully  real- 
ized. It  will  be  observed  that  he  began,  cautiously, 
to  express  his  sentiments  in  his  speech  at  Portland. 

Mr.  Hawkins  remained  twenty  days  in  the  State  of 
Maine,  and  delivered  in  that  time  thirty-six  lectures, 

*  Mr.  Hawkins  frequently  took  the  old  pledge,  and  made  ineffectir. 
tempts  to  reform. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  133 

and  raised  up,  it  is  said,  a  mighty  army  of  teetotalers. 
"  His  march  was  indeed  gloriously  triumphant ;  crowds 
of  attentive  auditors  hung  on  his  lips  wherever  he 
went."  In  many  towns  votes  of  thanks  were  paid 
him  for  his  invaluable  services.  * 

On  his  return  to  Boston,  in  the  first  part  of  August, 
he  met  with  a  warm  reception. 

"  The  church  in  Green  Street,"  says  the  Mercantile  Journal, 
"  was  filled  at  an  early  hour  on  Sunday  evening,  and  many  went 
away,  unable  to  enter,  every  part  of  the  house  being  crowded. 
Mr.  Hawkins  fixed  the  attention  of  the  numerous  audience  for 
an  hour  and  a  half,  in  depicting  the  miseries  of  the  drunkard, 
•his  wife,  and  children.  He  was  truly  eloquent  in  his  appeals 
to  save  the  drunkard,  and  by  a  variety  of  facts  proved  that  it 
can  be  done  ;  and  that  throughout  the  land  thousands  who  were 
once  drunkards  are  now  sober  men.  He  stated  that  in  all  his 
tour  through  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  and  many  parts  of  this 
State,  he  found  the  deepest  interest  to  prevail  on  the  subject 
of  temperance,  and  related  some  astonishing  cases  of  reformed 
drunkards.  His  appeal  to  the  manufacturers  and  dealers  in  in- 
toxicating drinks,  was  strong,  unanswerable,  kind,  and  to  the 
point,  and  must  have  produced  a  strong  effect.  Public  opinion, 
that  mighty  lever  which  can  not  be  resisted,  will  soon  over- 
throw, and  render  the  whole  traffic  too  odious  to  be  pursued  by 
those  who  set  any  value  on  the  favor  of  their  fellow-men,  or  an 
approving  conscience. 

The  most  of  the  month  of  August  he  spent  in  visit- 
ing the  camp-meeting  at  Eastham,  the  camp-meeting 
on  Martha's  Vineyard,  the  island  of  Nantucket,  New 

*  The  Portsmouth  Journal  says  that  a  little  girl,  cloven  years  of  age, 
from  a  neighboring  town,  who  hoard  .Mr.  Hawkins  lecture,  when  he  in- 
vited those  present  to  circulate  temperance  pledges,  went  home,  and  in  a 
week  obtained  one  hundred  and  fifty  names.  Who  is  there  that  can  do 
nothing  ? 

12 


134  L|FE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Bedford,  Fairhaven,  Mattapoisett,  Fall  River,  Taunton, 
lecturing  in  them  and  other  places.  Three  large  meet- 
ings were  held  in  New  Bedford,  and  a  cold  water  army 
formed  of  four  hundred  children.  Mr.  Hawkins  had 
at  this  time  many  able  coadjutors,  but  our  limits  forbid 
any  extended  remarks  upon  their  services,  such  as  they 
deserve.  At  the  camp-meeting  at  Martha's  Vineyard 
he  occupied  the  attention  of  the  assembly  of  about 
three  thousand  persons  nearly  the  whole  of  the  after- 
noon. Between  four  and  five  hundred  signed  the 
pledge  on  the  spot.  * 

He  arrived  at  Boston  on  the  first  of  September. 
Feeling  confident  of  maintaining  the  position  he  had 
assumed,  and  encouraged  by  the  liberal  support  of  the 
friends  of  temperance,  he  began  to  turn  his  attention 
to  the  education  of  his  children  and  the  two.  orphans, 
children  of  his  wife's  sister,  with  whom  it  was  a  pleas- 
ure to  share  the  bounties  bestowed  on  him. 

*  See  Journal  of  American  Union,  1841,  p.  156. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

"  Ah,  who  can  tell  what  wonders  it  hath  wrought ! 
Home  to  the  soul  what  long-lost  comfort  brought ! 
What  virtues  started  from  a  hopeless  grave, 
When,  wandlike,  o'er  it  Temperance  came  to  wave 
Her  own  pure  banner  !     Oh,  what  torn  hearts  healed  ! 
What  deep,  deep  founts  of  love  have  been  unsealed  1 
What  rosy  light,  what  living  streams  now  flow 
Where  all  was  black  and  sterile  with  long  woe !  " 

(FROM  JOHN  H.  w.  HAWKINS  TO  MRS.  SCHAEFFER.) 

BOSTON,  Sunday  morning,  Sept.  5,  1841. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER,  —  Your  kind  letter  dated  August  24Ui 
came  safe  to  hand,  and  would  have  been  answered  before  this, 
but  I  was  out  of  the  city.  You  write  me  that  Elizabeth  will 
be  ready  by  the  16th  inst.  I  wish  to  be  in  the  city  when  she 
arrives,  and  to  meet  her  at  the  cars  ;  and  in  order  to  accomplish 
this,  it  is  necessary  for  me  to  know  when  she  will  leave  Balti- 
more, and  whether  she  will  arrive  here  by  way  of  Providence 
or  Worcester  R.  R.,  and  let  me  know  who  is  her  protector. 
Tell  my  dear  daughter  she  must  be  watchful  and  very  guarded 
in  her  words  and  deportment  while  travelling,  and  when  she 
arrives  here  I  will  tell  her  what  kind  of  people  they  are  here  ; 
all  about  their  intelligence,  and  how  scrutinizing  they  are 
towards  us ;  but  as  kind  people  as  live  on  the  earth ;  very 
much  so  towards  me  and  my  family. 

You  did  not  mention  in  your  letter  whether  James  received 
the  draft  for  one  hundred  dollars  ($100).  I  requested  him  in 
it  to  answer  me ;  it  may  at  some  time  be  in  my  power  to  ren- 
der him  assistance  for  his  kindness  to  me. 

After  writing  the  above  I  went  to  church  to  hear  Mr.  Maffit ; 

M35) 


136  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

he  preached  a  gospel  sermon ;  he  has  more  religion  than  he 
formerly  had ;  at  any  rate  he  preaches  and  talks  as  if  he  had. 
My  poor  heart  was  warmed  up,  and  my  soul  is  in  full  stretch 
for  happiness  and  heaven.  My  sister,  you  say  you  pray  lor 
me,  and  that  while  you  was  writing  your  sight  was  almost 
blind  with  the  tears  in  your  eyes ;  just  so  it  is  •  with  me  at 
this  very  moment.  Glory  to  God  for  the  prospect  of  meeting 
as  an  unbroken  family  in  heaven.  I  am  made  to  think  who  of 
our  flesh  and  bone  are  now  resting  in  Abraham's  bosom,  look- 
ing out  for  us  :  —  a  kind  father,  two  brothers,  a  husband  and 
wife,  and,  praise  God,  our  dear  little  children ;  can  you  not  see 
them  by  the  eye  of  faith,  (I  can,)  around  the  throne  of  God  ? 
Bless  the  Lord,  0  my  soul,  and  all  that  is  within  me,  bless  his 
noly  name."  While  I  write  my  soul  is  happy,  and  I  have  to 
stop  to  wipe  the  tears  away ;  it  is  not  the  tear  of  sorrow  and 
regret ;  no,  my  dear  sister,  it  is  the  tear  of  joy  and  gladness, 
that  God  has  answered  the  many  prayers  that  have  been  of- 
fered up  for  me.  Oh,  my  mother,  my  dear  mother,  how  often 
she  has  prayed  for  me  ;  nearly  forty-four  years  ;  and  how  much 
she  loves  me.  You  say  mother  is  complaining.  My  dear 
sister,  soothe  her  in  her  downward — upward  course.  Tell 
her  Jesus  has  said,  "I  will  be  with  you;"  tell  her  God  will 
bless  her  more  abundantly,  the  nearer  she  approaches  life  and 
glory.  She  may  look  down  through  the  dark  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death,  but  beyond  the  vale  Jesus  stands,  holding  out 
a  crown  of  glory.  Amen,  amen,  so  let  it  be,  my  heavenly 
Father. 

When  I  came  to  that  part  of  your  letter  which  says,  "  Archy 
has  paid  us  a  visit  and  tells  us  he  visited  the  Washington  Tem- 
perance Society  last  night,  and  went  forward  publicly  and 
signed  the  pledge,"  you  say  to  your  great  joy,  it  was  good  news 
to  me.  I  love  my  dear  brother  Archy.  Tell  him  he  has 
talents,  and  that  there  is  a  work  for  him  to  do,  and  that  God 
expects  him  to  work ;  tell  him  to  remember  his  poor  brother 
John's  past  condition,  and  what  I  am  now  by  the  grace  of  God. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  137 

Tell  him  also  to  remember  his  own,  and  praise  God  we  are 
out  of  hell  and  within  the  reach  of  mercy ;  tell  him  to  hold 
out  faithful  and  I  should  be  glad  to  see  him  in  Boston.  I  was 
glad  to  hear  that  N "W signed  the  pledge. 

My  dear  sister  Frances,  it  gave  me  much  pleasure  to  hear 
that  William  George  went  to  church  with  you  every  Sunday 
night ;  why  not  in  the  morning  too  ?  Tell  him,  "  Remember 
now  thy  Creator  in  the  days  of  thy  youth,"  and  "  to  pray  in 
secret  and  God  will  reward  him  openly."  I  want  him  to  write 
and  let  me  know  how  it  is  with  him  ;  tell  him  it  will  give  me 
pleasure  to  hear  from  him  by  letter.  Enclosed  is  five  dollars 
($5)  for  him  ;  God  bless  him.  Lizzie,  does  she  feel  the  need 
of  a  Saviour  ?  tell  her  to  pray  much  in  secret,  and  God  will 
pardon  her  sins.  Isabella  and  David,  tell  them  I  love  them 
and  the  Saviour  loves  little  children,  for  he  said,  "  Suffer  little 
children  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid  them  not."  Tell  them, 
"  Honor  thy  father  and  mother,"  &c.  Tell  them  the  poor 
drunkard  is  still  reforming.  O  sister  Frances,  it  surely  is 
God's  work,  for  how  could  man  do  such  things  ?  Sometimes  I 
am  on  the  mountain-top,  sometimes  in  the  valley.  God  is  there, 
I  try  to  live  near  him ;  his  grace  supports  me,  for  without  it  I 
could  not  be  sustained  under  so  much  applause.  Continue  to 
pray  for  me,  dear  sister,  that  God  may  supply  me  with  sus- 
taining grace. 

I  want  Elizabeth  Schaeffer  to  write  me  a  long  letter.  I 
sometimes  look  at  myself  with  wonder  and  astonishment,  and  ask 
myself,  "Am  I  the  same  person  who  was  a  poor,  unhappy  drunk- 
ard a  short  time  ago."  Let  us  praise  God,  my  dear  sister,  for 
his  long  forbearance  towards  me,  and  let  the  language  of  our 
hearts  be,  "  not  unto  us,  not  unto  us,  but  unto  God  be  all  the 
praise  of  our  salvation."  Nothing,  my  dear  sister,  but  the  grace 
of  God  can  sustain  me  in  this  great  work.  It  is  true  I  have 
Item  e;ill(;d  iiiio  (his  great  field  of  labor  without  much  fore- 
thought on  my  par!,  but  what  of  that?  My  heavenly  Falli<-r 
12* 


LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

has  promised :  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  you  ;"  "  I  will  never 
leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee ;"  "  Though  he  slay  me  yet  will  I 
trust  in  him." 

Ann  [his  wife]  is  in  better  health  than  formerly.  Hannah 
is  in  excellent  health  and  will  soon  write  a  letter  to  her  grand- 
mother ;  she  was  much  pleased  with  that  part  of  your  letter 
relating  to  mother's  coming  to  Boston.  I  will  pay  her  passage 
to  arid  from  Boston,  and  something  more,  if  she  will  come  here 
in  the  spring. 

After  my  return  from  Maine  I  took  a  tour  through  Cape 
Cod  ;  was  at  Eastham  camp-meeting ;  a  great  time  you  will 
see  by  the  papers.  After  my  return  from  the  Cape,  only  one 
day  with  my  family ;  off  again  to  Nantucket,  New  Bedford, 
&c.,  &c.  On  my  return  from  Nantucket  stopped  a  few  days  on 
Martha's  Vineyard  Island,  at  a  camp  meeting ;  how  kind  the 
people  were  to  me.  I  lectured  at  this  meeting  from  1  P.M. 
till  4^  P.M.  I  never  saw  the  like  before  in  all  my  life. 

I  lecture  to-night  in  Dr.  Jenks'  Church.  I  returned  from 
Nantucket  to  this  place  on  Friday,  September  3d,  and  com- 
mence another  tour  to-morrow.  The  following  are  the  towns  I 
shall  visit :  Lexington,  Salem,  Medway,  Kingston,  Plymouth, 
Duxbury,  Scituate,  which  will  bring  me  home  on  the  16th 
inst.  I  shall  then  expect  to  hear  from  you,  and  will  remain 
in  the  city  until  Elizabeth's  arrival ;  if  she  can  leave  on  the 
13th  or  14th,  it  will  bring  her  here  about  Friday  or  Saturday, 
the  17th  or  18th,  if  you  can  so  arrange  it ;  if  not,  do  the  best 
you  can.  I  pray  God  that  no  accident  may  happen.  I  shall 
be  anxious  until  her  arrival.  We  are  all  in  high  expectations. 
I  have  sent  you  some  papers  ;  if  you  have  not  received  them 
they  are  in  the  post  office. 

I  fear  I  tax  you  and  James  too  much,  but  do  not  fear  of  tax- 
ing me,  for  it  does  me  good  to  hear  from  you.  My  wife  sends 
her  love  to  you  all.  Hannah,  Arthur,  and  Sallie  are  well.  I 
want  William  George  to  find  Mr.  Holmes,  and  tell  him  his 


j  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  139 

children  are  well,  in  good  hands,  and  all  their  wants  are  sup- 
plied. Give  my  love  to  mother,  and  to  all  my  nephews  and 
nieces. 

I  remain  your  brother, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Between  the  6th  and  15th  of  September,  1841,  he 
visited  and  lectured  in  Lexington,  Salem,  Medway, 
Kingston,  Plymouth,  Duxbury,  and  Scituate.  "  The 
meetings  in  all  these  places  were  well  attended ;  much 
real  interest  felt  and  carried  out  in  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance ;  a  vast  number  signed  the  pledge." 

On  reaching  Boston  he  addressed  the  following  letter 
to  Rev.  John  Marsh  ;  it  was  published  in  the  Journal. 

BOSTON,  Sept.  16,  1841. 

MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  The  cause  of  temperance  is  going  on 
here  gloriously.  We  shall  commence  a  series  of  protracted 
temperance  meetings  to-morrow  (Sabbath)  evening,  and  it  is 
our  intention  to  carry  the  war  into  the  ENEMY'S  camp,  as  did 
Putnam  with  the  wolf.  I  shall  use  my  influence  in  getting  up 
a  Merchants'  Temperance  Society  here.  One  is  needed.  My 
health  is  good,  very  good  ;  you  will  be  surprised  when  you  see 
me.  The  first  of  June  I  weighed  one  hundred  and  sixty 
pounds  ;  I  now  weigh  one  hundred  and  eighty-two  pounds.  I 
thank  God  for  the  good  health  of  my  body  and  the  peace  of 
mind  I  enjoy.  God  is  with  me ;  he  sustains  and  comforts  me 
in  my  labor.  I  pray  that  God  will  keep  me  humble  at  his  feet. 
My  dear  brother,  I  do  feel  thankful  and  humble  for  what  he 
has  done  for  me  ;  and  I  do  feel  that  nothing  short  of  the  grace 
of  God  can  sustain  me. 

Yes,  my  dear  brother,  he  has  raised  me  out  of  a  deep  pit  of 
wretchedness  ;  he  has  plucked  me  as  a  brand  from  the  burning, 
and  made  me  an  humble  instrument  in  his  hand  in  doing  much 
good.  I  cannot  write  what  I  feel.  My  poor  heart  is  full.  I 


140  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

am  almost  blind  with  the  tears  in  my  eyes.    I  brush  them  away 
to  say,  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest.    Salvation  has  come  to  my 
poor  soul.     Pray  for  me,  that  God  may  keep  and  sustain  me. 
I  trust  that  I  shall  pay  you  a  visit  in  October. 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

We  continue  our  extracts  from  his  journal : 

Left  Boston,  Sept.  27th,  on  a  long  tour  through  Massachu- 
setts, New  Hampshire,  and  Vermont.  Commencing  my  lec- 
tures at  Lancaster,  Mass.,  I  delivered  one  lecture  to  a  crowded 
house  ;  much  interest  is  felt,  and  the  cause  beginning  to  pros- 
per ;  one  hundred  and  twenty  signed  the  pledge.  At  Fitchburg 
lectured  to  a  crowded  house.  Here  a  military  company  was 
out  on  parade,  and  by  special  invitation  from  me  attended  my 
lecture.  Many  of  them  came  forward,  with  others  of  the 
congregation,  and  took  the  pledge.  This  place  bids  fair  to 
triumph  in  the  temperance  cause.  One  hundred  and  fifteen 
signed. 

Templeton,  29th.  —  Pledges,  one  hundred  and  eight.  Lec- 
tured in  the  Unitarian  Church ;  but  little  interest  felt  here  by 
the  community  generally.  Many  of  the  professed  friends  of 
temperance  not  setting  the  example  they  should  by  signing 
the  pledge. 

Chester,  Vermont.  — Lectured,  in  this  place  morning,  after- 
noon, and  night ;  deep  interest  is  felt  in  the  cause.  Mr.  Baxter, 
a  reformed  drunkard,  is  very  active  in  the  good  work.  In  this 
place  they  have  formed  a  Washington  Temperance  Society, 
and  are  doing  well ;  three  hundred  and  four  signed  the  pledge 
during  my  stay. 

Windsor,  Vt,  Oct.  8th.  —  Lectured  once  in  this  place;  one 
hundred  and  thirty-two  signed.  Left  in  the  morning  for  Dart- 
mouth College,  with  Rev.  Mr.  Richards.  Stayed  Oct.  9th  and 
10th  with  Deacon  Long ;  a  good  work  has  been  done  here  at 
the  college  among  the  students  ;*  with  most  of  the  Professors  at 

*  TEMPERANCE  AT  DARTMOUTH  COLLEGE.  — A  letter  from  Hanover 


LIFE  OF    JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS.  141 

their  head,  they  have  formed  themselves  into  a  temperance 
society. 

The  number  of  pledges  obtained  in  Barry  was  fifty ; 
Greenfield,  fifty.  In  Brattleboro'  he  delivered  in  two 
days  six  lectures,  and  took  two  hundred  and  sixty 
pledges.  At  Keene,  three  lectures.  Here  the  whole 
population  were  wide  awake,  and  four  hundred  signed 
the  pledge ;  at  Bellows  Falls,  one  hundred ;  Hanover, 

states  that  of  ninety-one  members  of  the  Senior  Class,  seventy-one  have 
signed  the  pledge ;  sixty-nine  out  of  eighty-five  of  the  Junior ;  forty-one 
out  of  seventy-nine  of  the  Sophomore ;  twenty-two  out  of  seventy-six  of 
the  Freshmen  ;  two  hundred  and  three  out  of  three  hundred  and  thirty- 
one.  And  some  of  the  students  who  have  not  signed  have  signed  else- 
where. Surely  this  is  an  encouragement  to  parents  to  send  their  sons  to 
Dartmouth. 

The  sound  principle  of  total  abstinence  is  gaining  ground  in  the  com- 
munity. The  N.  Y.  Observer  contains  an  extract  of  a  letter  from  Prince- 
ton, N.  J.,  showing  that  the  Faculty  of  Princeton  College  have  adopted 
the  total-abstinence  pledge ;  and  in  the  explanations  they  have  given  while 
taking  this  ground,  they  have  only  expressed  sentiments  which  are  enter- 
tained by  multitudes  who  are  willing  to  lend  the  weight  of  their  names 
and  examples  to  the  cause  of  temperance.  "  Our  temperance  meeting  on 
Tuesday  evening  was  the  commencement,  I  hope,  of  good  in  Princeton. 
Professor  Henry  opened  with  an  address  on  the  force  of  habit,  and  con- 
cluded by  saying,  that  as  far  as  his  example  went,  total  abstinence  should 
have  it ;  and  he  stepped  forward  and  signed  the  pledge.  Professor  James 
Alexander,  after  stating  his  protest  against  three  things;  viz.,  1.  That  it 
should  be  thought  that  theTricnds  of  temperance  considered  it  a  sin  to 
drink.  2.  That  the  society  should  at  all  interfere  with  the  communion. 
3.  That  any  one  should  be  constrained  to  say,  that  Scripture  wines  were 
not  intoxicating;  said,  he  had  come  to  do  what  he  had  never  done  before, 
to  sign  a  total-abstinence  pledge  :  and  he  accordingly  signed  it.  Profes- 
sor M'Lean  said,  he  had  been  wrongly  considered  an  enemy  of  the  total- 
abstineoot  Society;  ho  was  an  enemy  of  ultra  measures,  and  had  never 
M'jiicd  a  total-abstinence  pledge,  but  would  now  do  it,  and  ho  did  it. 
Many  of  the  students  also  signed.  Professor  M'Lean  then  stated,  that 
the  President  and  Professor  Dodd  were  prevented  by  .sickness  from  attend- 
ing and  signing."—  Mercantile  Journal,  Sept.  28,  1841. 


142  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

eighty-nine;  Woodstock,  two  hundred  and  sixteen.  At 
Rutland  he  attended  a  mass  meeting.  The  county 
poured  in  its  vigorous  population.  From  Pittsford 
came  fifty  wagons,  bringing  from  two  to  three  hun- 
dred people,  including  twenty-five  drunkards,  with  a 
good  band  of  music.  Six  hundred  in  Pittsford  signed 
the  pledge.  In  Montpelier  eight  reformed  drunkards 
pledged  themselves  to  the  cause,  and  commenced  vig- 
orously the  work  of  reform.  At  Burlington  he  deliv- 
ered two  lectures ;  some  interest  was  felt  in  the  cause. 
Journal  continued :  — 

Left  Burlington  19th  October,  in  the  steamboat,  for  White- 
hall ;  there  took  passage  by  stage  and  canal  packet  for  Sara- 
toga ;  thence  by  railroad  to  Troy,  remaining  all  night  in  Troy. 

Left,  21st,  in  steamboat  Troy  for  New  York ;  arrived  at 
night  in  time  for  my  lecture  in  Clinton  Hall  before  the  Mer- 
chant's Temperance  Society. 

After  reaching  New  York  he  received  a  letter  from 
Brattleboro'  with  the  following  pleasing  information :  — 

We  have  already  in  our  Washington  Society  one  hundred 
and  fifty  members,  six  or  seven  hard  cases.  We  have  raised 
by  subscription  one  hundred  and  eight  dollars,  for  the  relief  of 
the  suffering  families  of  those  who  have  joined  us.  The  ladies 
have  three  hundred  and  fifty  on  their  "list,  and  have  agreed  to 
send  a  petition  to  the  rumsellers  in  the  village,  requesting  them 
to  discontinue  their  business  ;  to  be  presented  by  three  inter- 
esting young  ladies.  The  young  men  are  moving  on  well- 
We  have  now  eight  hundred  names  of  a  population  of  fifteen 
hundred.  Your  visit  did  us  great  good.  It  set  the  ball  in 
motion.  You  will  long  be  remembered  by  us. 

His  friend,  Rev.  John  Marsh,  thus  speaks  of  the 
merchants'  meeting  above  referred  to :  — 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  143 

In  expectation  of  hearing  an  address  from  Mr.  Hawkins,  a 
meeting  of  the  Merchants'  Society  was  called  at  Clinton  Hall 
on  the  evening  of  the  21st.  As  he  did  not  arrive  in  the  city 
until  a  few  minutes  before  the  hour  appointed,  the  meeting  was 
at  first  thin  ;  but  a  large  meeting  of  the  Washingtonians  at  their 
hall,  hearing  that  he  had  arrived,  at  once  adjourned,  and  poured 
in  a  dense  crowd,  well  occupying  all  the  vacant  seats.  Mr. 
Hawkins  was  affected  and  animated  at  the  sight  of  his  redeemed 
comrades,  many  of  whom  he  had  himself  been  instrumental 
in  saving,  and  for  more  than  an  hour  and  a  half  he  entertained 
and  moved  the  audience  sometimes  to  laughter  and  sometimes 
to  tears,  by  a  relation  of  his  travels.  The  meeting  was  closed 
by  an  address  from  Mr.  T.  N.  Woodruff. 

One  result  of  the  inauguration  of  this  great  reform, 
was  the  assembling  of  large  masses  of  the  people  in 
County  and  State  conventions,  in  a  number  of  which, 
it  will  be  seen,  Mr.  Hawkins  took  a  very  prominent 
part,  and  gave  advice  as  to  the  proper  measures  to  be 
adopted  to  make  the  reformation  efficient  and  perma- 
nent. Similar  assemblies,  it  is  true,  had  formerly  been 
held ;  but  they  were  not  so  frequent,  nor  did  they  ex- 
hibit the  enthusiasm  which  characterized  these  meetings. 

The  result  of  these  movements  was  the  calling  of  a 
great  national  temperance  convention,  which  assem- 
bled at  Saratoga  Springs  on  the  27th  of  July,  in  the 
year  1841.  Five  hundred  and  forty  individuals  at- 
tended as  delegates,  gathered  from  nearly  every  State 
in  the  Union,  judges,  divines,  lawyers,  statesmen,  me- 
chanics, farmers,  and  merchants,  of  all  sects  in  religion 
and  of  every  school  in  politics.  They  came  to  consult 
upon  subjects  pertaining  to  the  best  interests  of  hu- 
manity ;  their  discussions  were  harmonious  and  highly 
encouraging  to  every  lover  of  his  race. 


144  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

In  the  course  of  his  remarks  upon  the  second  reso- 
lution offered  to  the  convention,  referring  to  the  move- 
ment begun  in  Baltimore,  Rev.  Dr.  Beaman  of  Troy 
expressed  the  following  sentiments  :  — 

This  is  the  first  time  that  the  temperance  movement  could 
be  justly  called  a  reformation.  Hitherto  it  has  been  no  refor- 
mation. It  has  Jbeen  the  great  object  and  endeavor  to  hold 
one  another  up ;  good  business,  indeed,  as  far  as  it  goes ;  but 
it  has  scarcely  accomplished  any  thing,  until  recently,  towards 
the  reclaim  of  those  who  had  fallen  under  the  power  of  alco- 
hol. But  these  reformed  drunkards  —  and  I  rejoice  that  they 
choose  to  call  themselves  by  this  name  —  it  indicates  a  humil- 
ity which  is  the  best  proof  of  the  genuineness  of  their  repent- 
ance, and  gives  a  cheering  pledge  of  its  permanence  —  show 
us  that  the  work  has  been  begun  in  earnest,  and  in  the  right 
quarter.  This  impulse  has  been  felt  all  through  the  land.  We 
have  many  more  here  present  than  would  have  been  but  for 
their  efforts. 

William  B.  Spooner,  of  Boston,  electrified  the  con- 
vention by  a  narration  of  the  wonderful  work  that 
had  been  accomplished  there ;  pledges  to  the  number 
of  four  thousand  two  hundred  had  been  taken  there 
and  in  South  Boston.  "  What  a  prodigious  result 
has  been  brought  round ;  four-fifths  of  the  drunkards 
of  a  city  numbering  one  hundred  thousand  entirely 
reformed  within  a  few  months !  When  or  where  has 
the  world  ever  looked  upon  the  like  ?  But  not  only  at 
Boston,  in  every  place  where  this  electric  fire  of  reform 
has  reached,  it  is  producing  the  same  astonishing  ef- 
fects." 

The  heart  of  the   worthy  and  indefatigable   Corres- 
ponding Secretary  of  the  A.  T.  Union  was  filled  with 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  145 

joy  at  the  marvellous  results  of  the  new  movement,  and 
at  the  harmony  of  the  proceedings.  On  returning  to 
his  post  he  thus  wrote  :  — 

Life,  it  has  been  well  remarked,  is  made  up  of  the  exciting 
anticipation  of  a  series  of  important  events,  and  of  short  spaces 
of  relief  when  they  are  past ;  spaces  either  of  bitter  mortifica- 
tion or  of  complacent  triumph  —  enduring  until  summoned  to 
the  next  in  course,  and  so  continuing  until  our  frail  bark  is  lost 
in  the  ocean  of  eternity.  We  have  returned  to  our  post  from 
one  of  those  exciting  and  important  movements,  and  returned 
with  rich  causes  of  gratitude  that  it  has  been  in  every  respect 
such  as  was  most  desirable  for  the  great  work  in  which  we  are 
engaged. 

We  refer  to  the  note  for  a  fuller  account  of  the  pro- 
ceedings at  this  Convention.* 

*(FROM  THE  MERCANTILE  JOURNAL.) 

SARATOGA  SPRINGS,  July  28,  1841. 

MR.  SLEEPER,  —  We  have  had  a  noble  Temperance  Convention, 
probably  never  surpassed  for  talent,  wisdom,  harmony,  and  efficient  ac- 
tion. Five  hundred  and  sixty  delegates  and  members  have  attended  j 
from  the  State  of  New  York,  386 ;  Massachusetts,  50 ;  Rhode  Island,  2  ; 
Vermont,  46 ;  Connecticut,  23 ;  New  Hampshire,  4 ;  Maine,  3  ;  New  Jer- 
sey, 7  ;  Pennsylvania,  9  ;  Maryland,  4 ;  Michigan,  4  ;  Louisiana,  3 ;  Ala- 
bama, 2  ;  Wisconsin,  3 ;  Ohio,  3 ;  Indiana,  2  ;  Georgia,  2  ;  Iowa,  1 ;  Mon- 
treal, 1  ;  Sweden,  1  ;  Sandwich  Islands,  1 ;  from  places  not  known,  3. 
Among  the  bright  lights  of  temperance  present,  were  Chancellor  Wai- 
worth,  Mr.  Delavan,  Dr.  Edwards,  Dr.  Humphrey,  John  Tappan,  Rev. 
J.  Pierpont,  Gerrit  Smith,  Dr.  C.  Jcwett,  Dea.  Moses  Grant,  Dr.  Charles 
A.  Lee,  J.  C.  Lovcjoy,  Rev.  Mr.  Scott,  of  Sweden,  &c. ;  while  a  number 
of  reformed  drunkards  graced  the  scene,  and  gave  life  to  the  day,  as  so 
many  captives  from  the  terrible  foe.  Never,  perhaps,  has  there  been  a 
business  meeting  in  the  world,  so  full  of  joy,  love,  and  praise.  The 
bursts  of  feeling  on  the  first  afternoon,  as  the  delegates  from  Boston,  New 
York,  Baltimore,  &c,,  —  I  may  say  especially  your  Mr.  Spooner,  —  told 
what  God  had  wrought,  and  described  the  incidents  in  the  delivery  from 
13 


146  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKIN 

During  the  deliberations  of  the  Convention,  Mr. 
Hawkins  was  performing  a  most  successful  tour  of  duty 
in  the  State  of  Maine.  As  he  gathered  from  the  daily 
papers  an  account  of  its  proceedings,  his  heart  was  en- 
couraged and  animated  with  redoubled  zeal  to  carry  out 
the  good  work. 

But  to  return  to  our  narrative.  After  his  address  be- 
fore the  Merchants'  Society,  he  remained  a  few  days, 
lecturing  in  the  city  and  neighboring  towns,  until  the 
29th,  when  he  thus  writes :  — 

I  left  this  day  for  Baltimore ;  remained  there  until  the  8th 

King  Alcohol  of  more  than  ten  thousand  drunkards,  were  indescribable. 
And  when  the  Convention  turned  back  to  look  at  even  the  work  which 
seemed  in  some  measure  hid,  the  Irish  reformation,  the  enthusiasm  was 
rather  increased  than  diminished.  The  discussion  of  the  great  principles 
of  temperance,  and  the  best  method  of  carrying  on  the  work  of  reform, 
were  calm  and  dignified,  all  receiving  a  new  interest  from  the  existing 
state  of  things  in  the  country.  During  the  sittings  of  the  Convention, 
six  public  meetings  were  held ;  three  in  the  large  grove  east  of  Congress 
Spring,  and  three  in  the  churches.  The  evening  meeting  in  the  grove  on 
Tuesday,  was  peculiarly  beautiful  and  solemn ;  some  thousands  sur- 
rounded the  platforms  hung  with  lamps,  all  deeply  interested,  first  in  the 
statements  of  Mr.  Scott,  from  Sweden,  then  in  the  cutting  satire  of  your 
Mr.  Pierpont,  then  in  the  wit,  and  thrusts,  and  affecting  narrations  of  Pol- 
lard, the  reformed  Baltimore  drunkard,  and,  last  of  all,  in  the  solemn  ap- 
peal of  Gerrit  Smith.  At  the  close  of  the  Convention,  Dr.  Humphrey 
expressed  it  as  his  opinion,  that  so  largo  a  body  of  men  had  never  assem- 
bled from  such  an  extent  of  country,  transacting  so  much  business  with 
pei'fect  harmony.  In  three  days'  discussion  of  near  thirty  resolutions,  he 
had  not  heard  an  unkind  word.  I  should  have  mentioned  that  the  chair 
was  first  taken  by  His  Honor  Chief  Justice  Savage,  who,  after  the  prayer 
by  Dr.  Beaman,  opened  the  meeting  by  reading  an  address  from  General 
Cookc,  President  of  the  American  Temperance  Union.  Chancellor  Wai- 
worth  was  made  President  of  the  Convention ;  Rev.  John  Marsh,  Dr. 
Edwards,  E.  C.  Delavan,  J.  B.  Segur,  John  J.  Norton,  llev.  Mr.  Slicer, 
Francis  Parsons,  and  Elisha  Taylor,  Business  Committee.  Their  reso- 
lutions, reported  and  adopted,  will  soon  be  before  the  public. 

Yours,  &c.,  E. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  147 

of  November.  Lectured  in  the  Rev.  Dr.  Breekenridge's 
church,  Rev.  Dr.  J.  Morris',  Rev.  Mr.  Hill's,  at  Milk  St.,  be- 
fore the  Howard  Society  twice,  and  once  to  the  "Washington. 

Nov.  8th.  —  Left  Baltimore  with  my  daughter  Elizabeth. 
Arrived  in  Philadelphia,  sojourned  with  Dr.  Burgin,  and  at 
night  lectured  to  the  Jefferson  T.  A.  Society.  The  meeting  at 
their  hall  was  well  attended ;  here  met  with  Mr.  Pollard  on  his 
way  to  Baltimore. 

Sth.  — Took  the  cars  for  New  York,  at  5  P.M.  ;  reached  New- 
ark at  midnight ;  remained  there  to  lecture  next  evening,  10th ; 
lectured  to  a  crowded  house.  Much  interest  is  felt  here  on 
the  subject.  The  Washington  T.  S.  formed,  and  in  a  prosper- 
ous condition. 

November  11. — Arrived  in  New  York,  and  remained  until 
Monday,  November  15th.  While  there,  on  Sunday  morning, 
lectured  at  the  Catherine  Market;  in  the  evening  at  Allen-Street 
Methodist  Chui-ch. 

Monday,  Nov.  15.  —  Left  for  Boston  by  way  of  New  Haven 
and  Hartford.  In  the  former  place  delivered  a  lecture  to  a 
crowded  house,  in  the  Methodist  Church.  On  Tuesday  to  the 
children,  and  at  night  to  a  large  audience  in  the  Rev.  Mr.  Dut- 
ton's  church  (Orthodox).  This  place  seems  to  be  wide  awake 
in  the  cause  of  temperance. 

The  Journal  of  the  American  Temperance  Union, 
thus  refers  to  the  return  of  Mr.  Hawkins  to  Boston : — 

This  bright  advocate  of  the  poor  unfortunate  drunkard 
stopped  a  few  days  in  our  city,  on  his  return  from  Baltimore 
to  Boston,  and  addressed  a  very  large  meeting  in  the  Methodist 
Chapel  in  Allen  Street ;  also  an  immense  meeting  at  Newark. 
We  had  the  happiness  to  see  him  throw  himself  into  the  arms 
of  his  reformed  brethren  at  the  Washington  Hall.  He  alluded 
very  happily  to  his  first  address  in  Green  Street,  where  the  first 
of  the  reformed  drunkards  of  New  York  cried  out  from  the  gal- 


148  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H-   w-    HAWKINS. 

lery,  "  Is  there  any  hope  for  me  ?  "  Speaking  of  his  happiness 
in  his  family,  he  suddenly  asked,  "  But  am  I  the  only  happy 
man  ?  "  Twenty  voices  answered  from  all  parts  of  the  hall,  "  No, 
No."  From  this  place  he  went  to  New  Haven.  A  letter  from  that 
place  says,  "  We  gave  him  a  full  house  Monday  night.  About 
one  thousand  children  were  out  yesterday  afternoon,  and  last 
evening  it  was  a  perfect  jam.  The  aisles  were  full,  quite  up  to 
the  pulpit.  He  was  very  happy  in  his  remarks.  All  were 
pleased."  One  hundred  and  fifty  names  were  added  to  the 
pledge."  Mr.  H.  is  now  in  Providence  speaking  to  immense 
audiences. 

On  his  arrival  in  Boston  he  wrote  to  Ms  son  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

BOSTON,  Nov.  20,  1841. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  We  arrived  in  Boston  after  a  very  pleas- 
ant journey  of  more  than  ten  days.  We  stopped  at  Philadel- 
phia, Newark,  New  Jersey,  New  York  city,  New  Haven,  Ct., 
Hartford,  Ct.,  Springfield,  Mass.  In  all  these  places  I  lectured 
to  crowded  houses.  I  found  your  mother  in  excellent  health ; 
also  your  sister  Hannah,  Arthur,  and  Sallie.  Your  mother 
and  myself  leave  here  to-day  for  Providence,  and  return  on 
Wednesday  next,  the  24th  of  November,  the  day  before 
Thanksgiving.  I  wish  you  could  be  here  on  that  day.  It  is 
always  a  great  day  here,  when  parents  gather  their  children 
together,  and  return  thanks  for  the  goodness  of  God  to  them. 
My  dear  son,  "  Remember  thy  Creator  in  the  days  of  thy 
youth;"  remember  what  our  good  Heavenly  Father  has  done 
for  your  poor  father,  and  is  still  doing.  Serve  him  with  an  undi- 
vided heart,  a  perfect  heart,  and  with  a  willing  mind.  I  shall 
be  lecturing  in  and  about  Boston  until  your  arrival  here.  My 
trip  to  the  South  is  postponed  for  the  present.  I  want  you  to 
write  me  positively  on  what  day  you  leave  Baltimore.  I  wish 
you  to  leave  as  soon  as  possible,  as  I  am  desirous,  as  soon  as 
may  be,  to  go  to  my  disfcmt  appointments,  which  1  cannot  do 
till  you  arrive  and  I  have  you  fixed  at  school. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  149 

Instructions.  —  Leave  Baltimore  at  9  A.M.,  arriving  in  Phil- 
adelphia at  4  P.M.  Take  the  cars  immediately  ;  you  will  ar- 
rive in  New  York  that  night  about  eleven  o'clock.  Get  a  por- 
ter to  carry  your  trunk  to  Mrs.  Ballard's  boarding-house,  which 
will  cost  you  twenty-five  cents.  Mrs.  Ballard's  is  at  the  corner 
of  Broadway  and  the  street  you  land  at.  Next  day  you  leave 
New  York  for  Boston,  1  think  at  hve  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 
The  porter  at  Mrs.  Ballard's  will  give  you  all  attention,  and 
the  information  you  desire.  You  must  introduce  yourself  to 
Mrs.  B.  as  my  son  ;  they  anticipate  your  coming,  and  will  be 
glad  to  see  you.  You  must  go  and  see  Mr.  Cutter;  he  will 
point  you  to  Mr.  Bigelow  across  the  street ;  see  him.  You 
will  have  all  the  morning  and  afternoon  to  look  about  New  York. 
Watch  your  baggage.  When  you  arrive  in  Boston,  which  I  think 
will  be  midnight,  take  a  cab,  telling  the  driver  to  bring  you 
to  the  National  Temperance  Hotel,  Louis  Boutelle,  corner  of 
Blackstone  and  Cross  Streets.  I  believe  I  have  written  all 
that  is  required.  You  must  by  all  means  call  on  Rev.  John 
Marsh,  Clinton  Hall,  at  the  American  Temperance  Union. 
Say  to  those  friends,  plainly,  without  any  seeming  embarrass- 
ment, "  My  name  is  .William  George  Hawkins,  son  of  John 
Hawkins ;"  that  you  are  on  your  way  to  join  your  father  in 
Boston,  and  you  will  see  their  eyes  beam  with  delight.  Enclosed 
I  send  you  ten  dollars.  I  am  very  scarce  of  money  at  present. 
If  it  is  not  sufficient  to  bring  you  on,  get  your  Uncle  James  to 
advance  you  a  little  more  and  charge  me.  The  money  I  send 
you,  convert  into  specie ;  don't  bring  any  railroad  money,  and 
watch  the  money  you  receive  on  the  road ;  the  best  way  is  for 
you  to  have  the  even  change  in  paying  your  passage.  Your 
cousin  Lizzie  was  to  negotiate  for  your  free  passage  to  Phila- 
delphia or  New  York  ;  see  lo  it,  We  arc  all  well.  Give  our 
love  to  all,  especially  to  your  Aunt  Frances.  I  want  to  hear 
from  them,  particularly  from  ln-r. 

Your  lather,  ulVrrlioimlrl v, 
J.  II.  W. 


150  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

November  20th.  —  Left  Boston  for  Providence  with  my  wife ; 
lectured  in  the  Methodist  Church  in  the  afternoon,  to  a  crowded 
house  ;  at  night,  in  Richmond-Street  Church ;  crowded  to  ex- 
cess. 

Monday,  22d.  —  Lectured  in  Pawtucket ;  rain,  and  meeting 

slim. 

Tuesday,  23d.  —  In  Dr.  Tucker's  church,  Providence ;  large 
audience. 

Wednesday,  27th.  —  Left  Boston  for  Thompson,  Ct.  Stopped 
at  Worcester ;  lectured  to  the  Cold  Water  Army  in  the  after- 
noon ;  lectured  the  same  day,  at  night,  in  Thompson,  to  a 
crowded  house. 

Sunday,  28th.  —  Lectured  in  the  Rev.  Mr.  Dow's  church  to 
a  crowded  house  ;  much  interest  manifested  in  the  cause  here  ; 
one  hundred  and  thirty  signed  the  pledge. 

Monday.  —  Heavy  snow  storm  ;  rode  in  a  sleigh  to  Chestnut 
Hill  to  lecture ;  very  few  in  attendance  on  account  of  the 
storm.  Thirty-six  signed  the  pledge.  The  society  formed  in 
this  place  now  numbers  over  two  hundred  in  two  months.  After 
lecture  returned  with  Mr.  Mowrey  Aimsbury  to  Killington 
Centre. 

_  Wednesday,  Dec.  1st.  —  Lectured  at  Westfield,  in  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Whitmore's  church ;  two  hundred  and  fifty  signed  the 
pledge. 

Thursday,  Dec.  2.  —  Lectured  at  Moosop  Depot ;  a  good 
work  has  been  begun  in  this  hard  place,  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  twelve  reformed  drunkards. 

Friday  3.  —  Returned  to  Boston  and  rested. 

The  following  letter,  dated  the  day  following,  was 
written  to  his  sister  :  — 

BOSTON,  December  4,  1841. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER,  —  I  returned  yesterday  from  Connecti- 
cut, where  I  have  been  laboring  for  a  week  past  with  great 
success,  and  leave  again  at  2  P.M.  this  day.  Truly  the  Lord  is 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  151 

good  to  me  in  blessing  my  efforts.  On  my  return  I  was  indeed 
glad  to  read  your  letter,  and  to  hear  that  you  were  crawling 
about  the  room,  somewhat  better.* 

My  dear  sister,  I  have  given  your  case  some  study  and 
prayer.  I  often  ask  myself,  "  Why  is  the  hand  of  the  Lord 
thus  upon  you  ?  "  Why  are  you,  my  dear  sister,  called  to 
pass  thus  under  the  rod  of  our  heavenly  Father  ?  I  hope 
you  are  not  impatient  under  a  chastisement  administered  by 
one  whose  wisdom  and  whose  goodness  you  cannot  call  in 
question.  Though  the  stripes  of  our  heavenly  Father  are 
often  laid  most  frequently  and  heavily  upon  those  whom  we 
should  think  need  them  least,  yet  we  do  not  know  what  impor- 
tant purposes  are  to  be  effected  by  such  a  course  of  divine 
procedure.  If  it  is  a  proof  that  our  heavenly  Father  loves  us 
to  be  thus  chastened,  may  it  not  prove  a  special  favor  to  be 
greatly  chastened?  I  do  believe,  judging  from  the  observation 
I  have  been  able  to  make,  that  those  persons  who  have  become 
what  we  call  eminent  for  piety,  have  generally  been  made  so, 
under  God,  by  suffering.  This  seems  reasonable  ;  for  how  can 
poor  depraved  human  nature  ever  rise  heavenward  when  it  can 
be  satisfied  with  earthly  objects  ?  "  Every  branch  in  me  that 
beareth  not  fruit  he  taketh  away,  and  every  branch  that  bear- 
eth  fruit  he  purgeth  it,  that  it  may  bring  forth  more  fruit."  My 
dear  sister,  what  has  Jesus  wrought  for  us  "  before  our  rav- 
ished eyes."  Yes,  he  laid  down  his  life  that  we  might  not 
perish  but  have  eternal  life.  "  Whilst  we  were  yet  sinners, 
Christ  died  for  us. " 

"  Oh,  what  a  blessed  hope  is  ours, 
While  here  on  earth  we  stay  : 

*  His  sister,  the  year  before,  in  passing  out  of  her  house  on  Sunday 
morning  on  her  way  to  church,  trod  upon  a  needle,  which  broke  off,  half 
of  it  remaining  in  her  foot;  supposing  it  had  all  been  removed  she 
walked  to  church,  but  was  unable  to  put  her  foot  to  the  ground  to  walk 
for  more  than  a  year  afterwards. 


152  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

We  more  than  taste  the  heavenly  powers, 
And  antedate  the  day." 

My  dear  sister,  with  all  your  afflictions  you  have  enjoyed 
much  of  the  presence  of  God.  A  sentiment  in  one  of  your 
letters,  written  August  24th,  rings  continually  in  my  ears.  It 
is  that  we  may  be  kept  and  saved  an  unbroken  family  around 
the  throne  of  God.  God  has  done  much  for  me  ;  he  has  raised 
me  up  to  become  an  instrument  in  his  hands  in  doing  much 
good.  I  feel  humble  and  thankful,  from  the  bottom  of  my 
heart,  that  I  am  not  in  a  drunkard's  grave,  and  in  a  drunkard's 
hell. 

How  comfortable  and  happy  my  family  are  ;  we  have  a  fam- 
ily altar  raised,  that  when  I  am  out  preaching  temperance, — they 
promised  me,  and  they  keep  their  promise,  —  my  family  may 
assemble  every  morning  and  evening,  read  the  Scriptures  and 
offer  up  prayer  and  thanksgiving  to  God  for  his  goodness  and 
mercy  to  us.  We  have  just  this  moment,  by  my  asking  each 
one,  viz.,  wife,  Elizabeth,  and  Hannah,  agreed  to  redouble  our 
diligence  in  the  service  of  God.  Hannah  attends  the  prayer 
meetings  and  has  asked  to  be  prayed  for  ;  Elizabeth  begins  to 
feel  much  on  the  subject. 

Tell  my  dear  son  to  search  the  Scriptures  and  pray  much  in 
secret,  reading  the  Word  of  God  on  his  knees.  Shall  I  ask 
how  it  is  with  Eleanora  and  Elizabeth  ?  Tell  them  to  pray  in 
secret,  "  and  the  Lord  will  reward  them  openly."  I  must  close, 
for  it  is  past  twelve  o'clock,  and  I  have  to  travel  in  a  carriage 
twenty  miles  this  afternoon  to  lecture  at  night.  You  see  that 
I  am  but  little  with  my  family  ;  but  God  is  with  them,  and 
that  is  the  best  of  all.  My  son  William  George  may  remain 
with  his  uncle,  say  until  early  in  the  spring  ;  I  wish  him  then 
to  enter  a  good  school  in  Massachusetts.  Give  my  love  to  dear 
mother ;  God  bless  her. 

I  had  like  to  forgot  B M .  I  felt  happy  by  the 

interview  with  her  while  in  Baltimore.  God  has  indeed  afflicted 
her  with  one  hand  and  blessed  her  with  the  other.  He  will  no 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  153 

doubt  give  her  the  kingdom  he  has  prepared  for  her  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world.  May  the  Lord  bless  you  and  keep 
you  unto  eternal  life,  is  the  prayer  of  your 

Affectionate  brother, 

JOHN. 

P.  S.  —  I  want  a  "  spiritual "  letter  from  my  son  soon,  that  is, 
next  week.  Please  inform  Mr.  James  McFaile,  at  Eli 
Howard's,  that  I  received  a  letter  from  him.  He  writes  me 
that  there  was  a  report  in  Baltimore  that  I  had  broken  up  a 
temperance  meeting  in  Bangor,  Maine  ;  the  report  is  false.  I 
have  written  to  the  President  of  the  society  there,  and  he  will 
hear  from  him  on  the  subject.  No  man  could  be  received  with 
more  respect  than  I  was,  for  it  was  there  the  society  gave  me  a 
public  dinner.  I  wish  this  to  be  read  to  Mr.  McFaile  by  James 
Baxley. 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Sunday,  December  5th.  —  In  Dedham  village,  lectured  in  the 
Town  Hall  to  an  overflowing  assembly.  In  this  place, 
some  few  do  not  seem  to  feel  that  interest  in  the  cause  they 
should  ;  it  is  thought  they  may  "  take  a  little,"  therefore  are  not 
friendly  to  total  abstinence. 

December,  8th.  —  South  Dedham.  Thursday,  rest.  Friday, 
in  West  Dedham ;  returned  to  Boston  in  the  morning,  and  left 
at  3  P.M.  for  Ipswich,  Mass.  On  Sunday  evening  lectured  in 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Fitch's  church  (Presbyterian)  to  a  crowded  con- 
gregation. 

Monday,  1 3th.  —  Lectured  in  Rev.  Daniel  Wise's  church 
(Methodist),  to  a  large  audience ;  much  good  done  here ;  over 
three  hundred  signed  the  pledge. 

Tuesday,  14th.  —  In  Newburyport. 

Wednesday,  15th.  —  Attended  a  convention  in  Exeter,  N.  H. 
with  the  Rev.  John  Pierpont.  Not  mucii  had  been  done  here 
in  the  cause  of  temperance,  but  do  hope  tlie  present  meetings 
of  the  friends  of  temperance  in  convention  will  give  the  cause 


154  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

a  fresh  impulse.  The  meetings  were  very  interesting,  and  the 
people  seem  willing  to  lay  hold  of  the  cause. 

December,  17th.  —  Returned  to  Newbury,  with  the  intention 
of  delivering  another  address  ;  but  a  very  heavy  storm  of  wind, 
rain,  and  snow  came  on,  and  it  was  thought  there  would  be  no 
people  out.  I  therefore  returned  to  Boston  to  fill  up  other 
appointments. 

Saturday.  —  Rest. 

Sunday,  19th. —  Lectured  in  Waltham. 

Monday,  20th.  —  Lectured  in  Upton  to  a  crowded  house. 
Much  has  been  done  here  in  the  cause  ;  a  heavy  snow-storm. 

Tuesday,  Dec.  21st.  —  Attended  a  county  convention ;  it  was 
well  attended  and  much  interest  manifested.  At  night  lectured 
to  an  overflowing  house. 

Wednesday,  Dec.  22d.  —  Lectured  in  New  England  Village 
to  a  crowded  house ;  great  interest  felt  here. 

Thursday,  Dec.  23d.  —  In  Shrewsbury  to  a  crowded  con- 
gregation, in  the  basement  of  the  Orthodox  Church. 

Friday,  24:th.  —  Lectured  to  a  crowded  and  interested  audi- 
ence in  Millbury. 

Saturday,  25th.  —  Christmas-day.  In  Boston  with  the  Cold 
Water  Army  in  Faneuil  Hall ;  Marlboro'  Chapel  at  night. 

Monday.  Dec.  27th,  1841.  —  Lectured  in  Thompson ;  also  in 
Plainfield ;  much  has  been  done  here  and  the  work  has  been 
thorough.  \ 

In  speaking  of  the  celebration  in  Faneuil  Hall  on 
Christmas-day,  and  the  review  which  that  day  called 
forth  of  the  year's  progress,  the  Mercantile  Journal  of 
December  27th  thus  speaks  : — 

.  The  temperance  celebration  at  Faneuil  Hall  on  Christmas- 
day  was  of  an  exceedingly  interesting  character,  and  was  cal- 
culated to  encourage  the  friends  of  this  great  and  glorious 
cause,  and  excite  them  to  renewed  and  still  more  strenuous 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  155 

exertions  in  behalf  of  the  great  moral  reformation  which  is 
now  going  on  throughout  the  whole  length  and  breadth  of  the 
land ;  a  reformation  which,  when  perfected  as  it  promises  to  be, 
by  elevating  hundreds  of  thousands  from  degradation  and  want 
to  respectability  and  competence,  will  increase  to  a  wonderful 
degree  both  the  moral  ami  physical  powers  of  this  republic. 
Since  the  first  of  January  last  much  has  been  done  to  extend 
the  blessings  of  the  temperance  reform.  Those  who  acted  as 
pioneers  in  the  cause  do  not  pause  in  their  efforts,  and  have 
welcomed,  within  the  year,  an  accession  to  their  ranks  which 
promises  the  most  successful  i-esults.  New  societies  have  been 
formed,  composed  of  men  most  of  whom  have  heretofore  been 
worshippers  of  the  bottle,  but  who  have  awakened  to  a  sense 
of  their  moral  duties,  and  who  now  go  forth  proclaiming,  with 
native  eloquence  and  arguments  supported  by  an  array  of  facts 
which  cannot  be  resisted,  the  mighty  evils  of  intemperance,  and 
the  blessings  of  abstinence  from  intoxicating  drinks.  This  no- 
ble band  have  already  produced  an  influence  on  public  opinion. 
The  drunkard  is  every  day  quitting  his  cups  forever ;  and  the 
dram-seller,  ashamed  and  conscience-stricken,  is  forsaking  the 
odious  traffic  in  which  he  has  been  engaged  and  seeking  a  rep- 
utable employment.  Even  the  man  of  wealth,  who  is  accus- 
tomed to  luxuries  of  an  enervating  tendency,  is  roused  from 
his  moral  apathy,  and  is  heard  to  declare  that  the  traffic  in  rum 
is  not  only  unnecessary  and  demoralizing  in  its  nature,  but  in- 
famous also ;  and  by  banishing  wine  from  his  table  he  has  set 
an  example  as  well  as  uttered  a  precept. 

The  Cold  Water  Army,  on  the  forenoon  of  Christmas-day, 
assembled  in  large  numbers  at  Faneuil  Hall,  where  the  exer- 
cises were  of  an  exceedingly  interesting  character,  and  appro- 
priate to  the  occasion  which  called  them  forth.  The  hall  was 
decorated  with  evergreens  and  temperance  banners,  and  with  the 
vast  array  of  smiling  countenances,  animated  with  the  elastic 
spirits  which  are  the  attendants  of  youth  and  hope,  presented 
an  attractive  scene.  After  an  appropriate  prayer  from  Rev. 


156  LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


Mr.  Lothrop,  |,ln-.  children  \v<-n;  addrr  <-,|  |,y  Mo-r<  (Jranl,  a 
Wcll-kliOWii  woi-l.in"  man  in  III--  l.-mprram-,-  raii-.r,  who  presided 
on  the  occasion,  l>y  II.  W.  Dwi^lil,  Mr.  Hawkins,  und  Mr. 
O'Brirn. 

In  the  afternoon  there  was  another  merlin^  al  Fam-nil  Hall, 

at  which  Samin-l  |-\  Ilolhrook,  tin;  /.ralon  .  :in.|  ind'-fat.igable 
I'rr/nlrnl  ol'  tin-  \Va-hin;/lon  Tolal-AI.  -lim-n.-c  Socidy,  pi-i- 
.'-.id.-d.  .John  II:i\vlJn  ,  in  lii,  (|ii;iinl  hnl  i-.IIi-i-li  vi-  III.-IIIIMT,  I  IK-II 
fiddivsM-d  fli.-  riici-lin^.  Tin  WM-,  on.-  of  liis  liappic-t  .•l)orr-(. 
Alici-  wliich  Mr.  Dwi^lil  and  th<;  Rev.  .Jolin  I'l.ip.Mil  mad'-  a 

few  short  and  pithy  remarks,  quite  to  the  purpose.  The  meet- 
ing then  adjourned  until  half-pant  six  o'clock,  to  meet  again  in 

I  In-,  old  "  (  Yadlc  ol'  Lilx-rly,"  ami  a  lar;.'«-  colli-clion  of  our  cili- 
/cn,  \vt:\<-  |ir<-  cnl,  and  li  h-m-d  (,,  ||,,,  Imrnin^  rloi  jin-nrr  of 
tlio-r.  who  -on-lit  lo  I'm;  lln-ir  counlry  from  (In-  thraldom  of 

tin-  monster  Intemperance. 

This  was  the  grand  meeting  of  the  day.    Long  before  the 
hour  tin;   hall  was  literally  crammed  from  floor  to 
A  greater  array  of  beauty,  or  a  more  respectable  as- 

,  j,rr/t<ij,s  n«-\  .  -r  h.-lurr  -nn-.-d  tin-  wall-,  of  I  In-  "Cradh; 

of  Liberty  ;  "  and  certainly  never  in  a  more  noble  cause.  Dr. 
J.  C.  Warren  presided,  and  a  prayer  was  oflm-d  hy  tin;  Il<:v. 
Dr.  Sharp.  Messrs.  Hawkins  and  Davis  then  addressed  the 
meeting;  hymns  were  sung,  in  which  the  whole  audience 
joined. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

"  The  wife,  whose  husband  thou  didst  toil  to  savo, 
Not  vainly,  from  the  drunkard's  yawning  grave, 
Shall  tcacli  her  little  ones,  in  coining  days, 
'I'n  ti-11  thy  story  and  to  lisp  thy  praise; 
Tin',  c-liild,  ivdi-niied  I'm  in  all  tin;  sli:unrs  lliut  (ill 
A  rum-cm  '  <l  II<MI  <•,  from  woes  that  blight  and  kill, 
Limping  thy  name,  shall  link  it  morn  and  even 
With  the  sweet  prayers  that  tivmblc  uji  to  Heaven." 

A  VKAK'S  experience  in  addressing  popular  assem- 
s,  together  willi  the  possession  of  good  judgment) 
a  clear  mind,  :md  :i  remarkable  memory,  enabled  Mr. 
Hawkins  <o  s]x-ak  upon  llic  drinking  usages  of  society, 
and  against,  tin-  trailirt  in  intoxicating  drinks,  in  such  a 
manlier  as  no  sophists  could  withstand.  His  industry 
and  enthusiasm  increased  as  he  comprehended  more 
clearly  the  ama/ing  work  which  remained  to  be  accom- 
plished. 

On  ihe  :jd  of  .January,  1842,  he  has  this  brief  entry 
in  his  journal  :  — 


in    Xcwport   until    Satunhiy,  January  8th  ;  during 
my  ~l;iy  in  tliat   r-ily  <JV<T  ciglil.   liiindivd    persons  aflixcil   their 
iturei  I"  111'-  l<;nij)«-r:in«-c  pli-il^c.      In  no  place  that  I   li;iv<: 
\i  ii«-(l  li:i-  -•/  niiidi  lii-i-n  done  for  llic  cause. 

"We  have,"  say  the  I\1rr<-<inl,ili:  Journal,  "  be.  n 
favored  |»y  Mr.  Hawkins  with  the  following  summary 
1)111  iiii'-i-  ''teli  <•!'  his  trip  to  Newport,  R.  L,  and 

the  proceeding  while  there." 
14 


158  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Monday  morning.  —  Left  Boston  for  Newport ;  in  the  even- 
ing lectured  in  Zion  (Episcopal)  Church ;  crowded  house ; 
much  interest  felt  on  the  subject. 

Tuesday.  —  Lectured  in  same  church ;  interest  increasing ; 
a  great  many  drinkers  signed  the  pledge. 

Wednesday  evening.  —  Lectured  in  Methodist  Church  ;  peo- 
ple felt  more  at  home  ;  the  interest  increasing  to  an  astonishing 
degree ;  drinkers  and  drunkards  giving  up  their  cups,  and  the 
rum-sellers,  like  Felix,  tremble  and  quake  for  fear.  No  wonder 
there  is  a  cry  made,  "  By  this  craft  we  have  our  wealth." 

Thursday  afternoon.  —  Met  the  children  ;  the  house  literally 
jammed.  It  was  the  most  imposing  sight  I  ever  beheld ;  a 
large  church  crowded  to  overflowing  with  children  and  parents. 
Many  a  tear  trickled  down  the  cheek  of  parent  and  child  at 
the  redemption  of  the  husband,  father,  and  son.  More  than  a 
hundred  of  these  dear  little  ones,-with  pledge  in  hand,  are  acting 
as  home  missionaries,  in  getting  signers  to  the  "  Second  Decla- 
ration of  Independence."  In  the  evening,  lectured  in  the  same 
church.  It  is  impossible  to  pen  a  description  of  the  interest 
felt  in  Newport.  Suffice  it  to  say,  I  have  never,  in  all  my 
travels,  seen  any  thing  like  it.  "  Truly,  it  is  the  work  of  the 
Lord,  and  marvellous  in  our  eyes." 

Friday  evening.  —  The  house  full;  the  people  have  truly 
taken  hold  in  the  proper  style.  This  evening  three  hundred 
signed  the  pledge.  Over  eight  hundred  signed  the  pledge  dur- 
ing my  stay.  Three  thousand  have  signed  the  pledge  since 
Thanksgiving-day,  when  the  work  commenced !  I  shall  ever 
remember  the  people  of  Newport  with  gratitude,  notwithstand- 
ing the  false  reports  that  have  been  published  in  the  papers. 
It-would  seem  hard  to  condemn  a  whole  town  for  the  want  of 
interest  in  a  subject  they  have  not  felt.  If  they  never  before 
felt  the  importance  of  the  subject,  they  feel  it  now,  and  are 
doing  more  than  any  place  I  ever  visited.  I  cannot  close  with- 
out saying,  much  credit  is  due  to  the  females.  They,  like  Mary 
of  old,  "  last  at  the  cross  and  earliest  at  the  grave,"  are  fore- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  159 

most  in  administering  to  the  wants  of  the  poor  and  needy ;  they 
have  a  Martha  Washington  Society,  and  meet  every  Tuesday 
to  receive  clothing,  and  prepare  them  for  the  reformed  drunk- 
ard, his  wife,  and  children,  who  no  doubt  will  rise  up  and  call 
them  blessed. 

The  President  of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society, 
Edward  W.  Lawton,  Esq.,  is  a  first-rate  man  arid  thorou^h- 
going  in  the  work  of  reform.  Many  of  the  most  respectable 
men  in  the  place  have  come  forward,  and  do  not  feel  it  dero"-- 
atory  to  their  characters  to  publicly  place  their  names  to  a 
pledge  of  total  abstinence,  for  the  sake  of  the  reformed  drunk- 
ard ;  and  to  use  their*  influence  in  saving  their  fellow-men  from 
a  drunkard's  grave,  and  dry  up  the  tear  of  the  almost  broken- 
hearted wife  and  children.  Indeed,  it  gives  me  pleasure,  and 
I  hope  I  am  not  doing  wrong,  in  mentioning  the  name  of  the 
Hon.  Dutee  J.  Pearce,  among  many  that  I  do  not  remember 
who  have  taken  this  bold  stand,  and  will  be  workers  in  the 
cause.  Several  rum-sellers  have  already  abandoned  the  sale. 
May  the  work  go  on  until  not  a  drop  may  be  found  on  the 
island. 

The  following  letter  from  a  dear  friend  of  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins, giving  the  circumstances  which  preceded  and 
accompanied  his  visit  to  Newport,  will  be  read  with 
interest :  — 

(EDWARD  w.  LAWTON,  ESQ.,  TO  THE  con.  SEC.  A.  T.  u.) 

NEWPORT,  Jan.  8,  1842. 

DEAR  SlR,  —  On  the  subject  of  temperance  in  Newport, 
previous  to  the  last  five  or  six  weeks,  there  was  little  to  gratify 
the  feelings  of  the  philanthropist.  The  blighted  remains  of 
some  thirty  or  forty  distilleries,  where  liquid  poison  was  made 
to  barter  in  Africa  for  the  souls  and  bodies  of  men  and  women, 
scorned  to  have  set  their  seals  upon  us  with  a  strength  of  im- 
P""ssion  that  nothing  could  efface.  All  the  eflbrts  to  get  up  a 


160  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

reform  in  this  matter  were  almost  entirely  abortive.  Temper- 
ate men  in  small  numbers  formed  societies,  one  after  another, 
which  had  a  short-lived  existence,  and  were  heard  of  no  more. 
They  were  honest  and  well-meaning  men,  true  to  their  princi- 
ples as  far  as  they  had  light,  and  perhaps  sowed  some  of  the 
seed  that  has  lately  sprang  up  so  abundantly ;  the  pledge  of 
total  abstinence  was  adopted  among  them  early,  but  like  their 
contemporaries  elsewhere,  almost  all  their  labors  began  at  the 
wrong  end.  This  may  be  considered  as  a  true  sketch  of  the 
subject  up  to  Thursday,  the  25th  of  November,  1841  (Thanks- 
giving-day). On  that  day  two  gentlemen  arrived  in  town,  as 
lecturers,  from  some  part  of  Massachusetts,  and  held  their  first 
meeting  in  the  evening.  It  excited  so  little  attention  at  first, 
that  I  did  not  hear  of  it  until  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day, 
although  I  was  in  the  practice  of  attending  such  meetings. 
These  men  seemed  to  possess  but  moderate  talents  as  lecturers, 
but  were  animated  by  a  very  proper  spirit  for  the  work,  and  as 
the  result  leads  us  to  suppose,  began  a"t  the  right  end ;  at  any 
rate,  they,  and  those  by  whom  they  were  met,  succeeded,  under 
Providence,  in  raising  up  a  feeling  in  favor  of  the  cause,  hith- 
erto unparalleled.  They  staid  about  three  weeks,  held  meet- 
ings almost  continually,  and  which  continually  increased  in 
numbers,  until  upwards  of  a  thousand  names  were  put  upon 
the  pledge,  being  about  one-eighth  of  our  population.  Among 
the  signers  were  many  of  our  most  noted  drunkards.  One 
circumstance  occurred  during  the  time  above  mentioned  which 
made  a  strong  impression  on  the  public  mind,  and  which  was 
improved  by  the  lecturers.  A  soldier  of  the  garrison,  during 
the  violent  snow  storm  which  occurred  the  last  of  November, 
came  into  town  and  got  very  drunk  at  one  of  our  shops ;  he 
was  found  in  the  street  and  taken  in  by  a  humane  individual, 
and  kept  till  he  was  measurably  sober,  who  advised  him  to  go 
to  the  Fort  without  drinking,  so  as  to  get  there  in  time  to 
escape  punishment.  He  set  off,  apparently  with  that  intention, 
but  the  next  morning  he  was  found  frozen  to  death,  about  half 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  161 

way  between  the  town  and  Fort,  with  a  bottle  of  gin  buttoned 
under  his  frock.  It  is  supposed  that  he  drank  from  the  bottle 
on  his  way. 

At  this  stage  of  the  enterprise  I  wrote  to  Mr.  John  Tappan, 
of  Boston,  from  whom  I  had  an  immediate  answer ;  his  kind- 
ness  and   assistance   have   been    very   great.      Through   his 
instrumentality  we  had  one  very  powerful  lecture  from  Col. 
D wight,  of  Stockbridge.     This  lecture  produced  a  great  sensa- 
tion, and  caused  the  subject  to  be  much  examined  by  those  who 
had  before  been  indifferent,  and  constituted  one  great  step  in 
our  progress  onward.     From  this  time  up  to  the  3d  of  Janu- 
ary, much  was  done  in  various  ways,  by  lectures  from  clergymen 
and  others   (four  of  the  former  having  heartily  espoused  the 
cause),  by  conferences,  and  by  individual  visiting  and  exhorta- 
tion.    On  the  3d,  Mr.  Hawkins  arrived  here  in  the  evening 
and  commenced  lecturing  in  little  more  than  an  hour  after,  and 
from  that  time  until  this  morning  it  has  been  a  perfect  jubilee. 
The  whole  public  mind   has  been  engrossed  and  absorbed  by 
this  one  question.     Immense  meetings  every  evening,  and  con- 
tinual visits  through  the  day  ;  constant  applications  to  sign  the 
pledge  left  the  friends  of  the  cause  but  little  time  to  spare  for 
other  avocations.     Mr.  Hawkins  several  times  expressed  the 
opinion  that  it  exceeded  any  movement  he  had  yet  seen,  even 
that  of  the  celebrated  reformation  in  Springfield,  Mass.     Our 
pledge  roll  now  numbers  upwards  of  two  thousand  five  hundred, 
many  of  whom  were  drunkards,  or  hard  drinkers,  not  one  of 
whom  has  yet  broken  his  pledge.   Rum-sellers  in  all  directions  are 
giving  up  their  business.     Several  bars  have  been  taken  down 
this  day,  since  Mr.  Hawkins  went  away.     Townsend's  coffee- 
house (so  miscalled),  that  has  been  a  great  drinking-house  for 
nearly  a  century,  this  evening  closed  its  bar;  several  have 
thrown  their  liquors  into  the  street;  some  into  the  back  yards. 
1  called  on  one  man  to-day  who  had  signed  the  pledge,  and  told 
him  then:  was  a  feeling  of  uneasiness  among  (he  friends  from  a 
n-j.ort  that  he  had  some  liquors   left.     He  thanked  me  most 
u* 


162  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

cordially,  and  said  if  he  had  been  always  thus  kindly  treated, 
he  should  have  been  a  temperance  man  two  years  sooner,  and 
added,  "  What  shall  I  do  ?  I  have  but  one  cask,  and  that  I  have 
determined  not  to  sell."  I  replied  that  if  he  woald  throw  it 
away  he  would  get  rid  of  the  poison  and  the  imputation  both 
together.  He  said  immediately  if  I  would  help  him  to  get  it  out, 
it  should  go.  It  was  accordingly  set  to  running  in  the  back 
yard ;  his  family  lived  in  the  same  house,  and  his  children, 
discovering  what  was  doing,  came  out  and  danced  round  it  for 
joy.  Believe  me,  sir,  I  do  not  state  this  circumstance  to  cele- 
brate my  own  part  in  it,  but  only  to  add  my  testimony  to  many 
others  as  to  the  efficacy  of  kindness  in  conducting  this  enter- 
prise. It  has  been  a  general  feeling  among  us,  and  has  evi- 
dently been  productive  of  the  best  results  ;  under  its  influence 
the  utmost  unanimity  has  prevailed  among  us,  "  the  eye  has 
been  single  (to  the  object),  and  the  whole  body  (seemingly)  full 
of  light."  I  would  not  be  understood  as  taking  any  credit  to 
ourselves  in  this  matter ;  the  hand  of  God  is  evidently  in  it, 
and  if  his  servants  are  but  faithful,  it  will  prosper  to  their  ever- 
lasting benefit.  Mr.  Hawkins,  during  the  few  days  he  staid 
among  us,  got  a  strong  and  most  affectionate  hold  upon  our 
feelings,  and  I  trust  we  have  imparted  something  of  the  same 
to  him. 

January  9.  —  This  evening  I  have  atte'nded  a  lecture  by  the 
Catholic  priest  before  our  society,  at  his  own  church.  He  is  an 
Irishman;  evidently  a  man  of  learning.  His  discourse  was 
peculiar,  convincing  and  forcible,  and  formed  an  interesting 
variation  from  the  many  we  have  heard  lately.  The  house 
was  crowded  to  an  extreme,  and  I  should  think  as  many  went 
away  as  got  in.  In  mentioning  the  number  of  signers  I  do  not 
include  the  Catholic  pledge,  which  would  bring  the  number 
nearly  up  to  three  thousand.  A  very  numerous  juvenile  socie- 
ty was  formed  yesterday,  and  a  numerous  and  active  Martha 
Washington  Society  has  carried  on  its  active  labors  for  three 
r  four  weeks.  Mr.  Roger?,  the  lecturer  on  India,  is  here,  and 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  1G3 

we  are  making  arrangements  to  have  the  drunkard's  stomach 
exhibited  with  the  aid  of  the  magic  lantern,  which  we  hope 
may  convince  some.  Notwithstanding  this  detail  of  good 
(which  you  may  think  is  rather  long),  we  have  still  evil  among 
us.  One  great  distillery;  many  grog-shops;  two  or  three 
ministers  who  do  not  come  up  to  the  total  pledge,  and  of  course 
their  congregations  are  lukewarm  ;  and  the  self-sufficient  mod- 
erate drinkers,  they  are  here ;  still,  if  we  "  go  on  "  as  we  have 
done,  it  will  soon  be  their  turn  to  come  in.  God  grant  that  it 
may  be  so  till  not  one  is  left.  Excuse  the  length  of  this  letter, 
and  believe  me  truly  yours, 

EDWARD  W.  LAWTON. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Mr.  Hawkins  early  per- 
ceived, that  no  matter  how  great  the  effort  to  rescue 
the    intemperate  from  the  misery  of  their  condition, 
while  the  enticements  of  the  rumshops  continued  his 
'abors  must  prove,  in  very  many  instances,  fruitless ; 
and  if  permitted  always  to  exist,  the  complete  reforma- 
tion of  many  would  prove  but  an  idle  dream.     While 
he  manifested,  therefore,  a  boundless  sympathy  for  the 
drunkard,  and  kindness  towards  the  rumseller,  person- 
ally, he  began  to  turn  the  whole  force  of  his  accumu- 
lated facts  and  arguments  against  the  manufacture  and 
traffic. 

He  did  not  abandon  moral  suasion ;  but  while  he  ap- 
plied it  to  the  victims  of  the  traffic  in  inducing  them 
to  forsake  their  cups,  he  did  all  in  his  power  to  per- 
suade the  rum-seller  to  abandon  his  calling.  He  early 
sought  to  arouse  a  healthy  public  sentiment  against 
the  glinting  of  licenses  to  sell,  hoping  that,  ultimately, 
law-makers  \\<>uld  be  elected  who  would  place  upon 
the  statuir-b..'.'!.  cnacinicnts  prohibitory  of  a  trade  so 


LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

pernicious  in  its  tendencies.     In  September,  1841,  a 
Boston  temperance  journal  used  this  language: 

There  is  a  strange  feeling  manifested  by  a  multitude  of  our 
temperance  men  respecting  the  dealers  in  intoxicating  drinks. 
Some  say,  "  Oh,  let  them  alone ;  they  will  soon  give  it  up." 
Others  say,  "  Moral  suasion  is  the  way ;  don't  drive ;  you  can't 
drive."  Others  still  object  to  have  us  use  sharp  or  pointed 
language.  "  Now  don't  be  severe ;  our  taverner  is  a  good  sort 
of  a  man,  and  if  you  say  any  thing  to  touch  him,  it  will  only 
make  him  worse,"  &c.  &c.  It  is  time  to  use  plain  English 
with  the  rum-seller  of  every  grade ;  and  as  we  have  tried  « tufts 
of  grass "  long  enough,  without  bringing  him  down  from  his 
rum  casks,  it  is  time  to  try  the  "  virtue  of  stones."  John 
Hawkins  is  doing  more  than  any  other  man  to  give  right 
impressions  upon  this  subject,  and  to  bring  down  upon  this 
enemy  of  man  just  indignation  and  rebuke.  A  man  who 
sells  rum  in  the  midst  of  us,  where  there  is  so  much  light 
upon  the  subject,  so  great  a  struggling  among  drunkards  to  es- 
cape, such  a  multitude  of  men  giving  their  time,  influence,  and 
substance  to  counteract  his  influence,  might,  under  other  cir- 
cumstances, become  a  robber  or  a  pirate ;  and  the  sooner  we 
pounce  upon  him,  hoot  at  him,  and  let  him  know  in  long  and 
unmeasured  withdrawal  of  all  respect  for  him  or  endurance  of 
him,  that  we  give  him  no  rest,  the  better.  Let  us  turn  our  backs 
upon  him,  as  we  would  upon  the  murderer  of  our  children  and 
the  destroyer  of  our  race.  Let  our  indignation  come  upon  him 
like  a  tempest,  and  our  rebuke  like  a  fire.  IT  is  TIME,  AND 

THERE   IS    OCCASION. 

In  his  first  address  in  Faneuil  Hall,  Mr.  Hawkins 
alluded  in  strong  terms  to  the  enormous  inconsistency 
of  shutting  up  the  drunkard  in  the  House  of  Correc- 
tion, and  of  inflicting  punishment  upon  him,  while  the 
enticements  to  indulgence  were  still  allowed  to  be  held 
out  by  the  rum-seller.  «  You  are  bound,"  he  said  in 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   \V.    HAWKINS.  165 

conclusion,  "to  turn  the  whole  tide  of  public  opinion 
against  the  traffic ; "  and  he  never  faltered  for  a  mo- 
ment, in  his  whole  subsequent  career,  in  acting  up  to 
these  settled  convictions  of  his  mind. 

The  principle  of  "  Prohibition  "  was  here  most  dis- 
tinctly announced.  Mr.  Hawkins  did  not,  at  first,  ad- 
vocate legal  enactments  against  the  rurn-seller,  but 
sought  rather  to  win  him  by  kind  entreaty  to  abandon 
his  business.  He  would  go  to  him  and  kindly  invite 
him  to  attend  his  meetings,  and  then,  instead  of  de- 
nouncing the  man,  would  appeal  to  his  reason  and 
conscience,  by  detailing  in  the  most  touching  manner 
the  effects  of  intemperance  in  destroying  social  happi- 
ness, as  a  direct  result  of  the  sale  of  his  liquors,  until 
he  became  heartily  ashamed  of  his  occupation,  and 
was  constrained  to  abhor  the  nefarious  traffic.  In 
many  instances  the  business  was  abandoned.  It  was 
not  until  this  policy  failed,  that  temperance  men  were 
compelled  to  resort  to  the  agency  of  legislation. 

However  strong  then  his  convictions  of  the  evil 
of  the  traffic,  Mr.  Hawkins  never  allowed  himself  to 
be  diverted  a  moment  from  his  daily  work  of  saving 
the  inebriate  from  the  results  of  his  unfortunate  delin- 
quencies. With  the  new  year  his  zeal  was  renewed, 
and  his  labors  became  more  abundant. 

About  the  first  of  January,  1842,  a  tract  appeared 
in  Boston,  bearing  the  following  title :  "  The  New 
Impulse  ;  or,  Hawkins  and  the  Reform.  A  Brief  His- 
tory of  the  Origin,  Progress,  and  Effects  of  the  present 
astonishing  Temperance  Movements,  and  of  the  Life 
and  Reformation  of  John  II.  W.  Hawkins,  the  Distin- 
guished Leader.  Embellished  wiih  a  correct  likeness 
of  said  Hawkins.  By  a  '.IV 


166  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

This  pamphlet  was,  without  doubt,  the  means  of 
doing  much  good.  In  summing  up  the  results,  the 
author  says:  "  The  whole  number  who  have  signed 
the  pledge  and  joined  the  Washington  Total  Absti- 
nence Societies  in  the  principal  cities,  and  in  various 
parts  of  the  country,  is  surprisingly  great ;  the  exact 
number  cannot  be  ascertained,  but  is  estimated  in 
round  numbers,  by  those  best  acquainted  with  the  facts, 
to  be  :  In  Baltimore,  about  12,000  ;  New  York,  10,000 ; 
Boston,  5,000  ;  all  other  places  in  New  England, 
73,000;  other  Northern  States,  100,000;  total,  200,- 
000.  A  majority  of  these  are  supposed  to  have  been 
hard  drinkers,  and  a  large  proportion  hardened  drunk- 
ards ;  all  reformed  from  the  example  and  exertions  of 
one  man.  How  wonderful !  How  sublime ! "  How- 
ever great  Mr.  Hawkins'  instrumentality  in  produ- 
cing such  results,  his  humble  estimate  of  himself,  and 
his  sense  of  justice  to  the  multitude  of  his  co-laborers 
in  this  reform,  would  hardly  have  permitted  him  to  be 
satisfied  with  this  wholesale  laudation. 

The  Journal  of  the  A.  T.  Union,  at  the  time  the 
tract  appeared,  made  the  following  very  just  remarks  :  — 

This  is  a  well-timed  and  popular  tract,  issued  with  numer- 
ous and  high  recommendations.  We  are  surprised,  however 
at  the  prefixing  of  a  face  in  which  we  can  see  nothing  of  our 
friend  Hawkins,  especially  as  the  Bostonians  have  a  fine  like- 
ness of  him.  A  few  statements  are  made  which  need  correc- 
tion. It  was  not  in  a  steamboat,  but  in  the  counting-room  of 
Mr  John  Tappan,  of  Boston,  that  Mr.  Hawkins  was  induced  to 
throw  away  his  tobacco.  The  work  is  somewhat  too  local  for 
one  which  would  give  a  general  history  of  this  wonderful 
movement.  The  legislation  of  Massachusetts  was  all  absorbing 
there,  but  it  little  affected  the  rest  of  the  country  ;  and  though 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  167 

to  a  Bostonian,  the  names  of  Sargent,  Crosby,  Perry,  Pierpont, 
and  Jewett,  stand  prominent  as  pioneers  in  the  cause,  yet  one 
who  would  trace  the  origin  of  the  Baltimore  movement,  should 
understand  and  let  the  world  know,  that  in  that  matter  all  the 
foundation  walls  were  laid  by  that  old  veteran,  Christian 
Keener.  We  perceive  also  in  this  little  work  a  disposition, 
which  we  have  noticed  elsewhere,  to  make  this  wonderful  re- 
form, not  merely  the  work  of  God,  this  we  fully  believe,  but 
a  religious  reform  in  itself,  and  something  superior  to  the  piety 
found  in  ministers  and  churches.  Such  language  we  notice  as 
this :  "  The  new  system  is  practical  Christianity,  Christianity 
carried  out."  "  The  practical  Christianity  of  these  humble  re- 
formers may  well  put  many  of  the  pastors  and  churches  of  the 
land  to  the  blush  for  their  cold,  formal  religion  and  dead  faith." 
pp.  20  and  21.  Every  thing  in  its  place;  temperance  in  its 
place  ;  philanthropy  in  its  place  ;  and  religion  in  its  place.  Many 
of  the  reformed,  we  rejoice  to  say  it,  have  become  hopefully  pious 
men.  We  hope  all  will  be  truly  so.  But  reformation  from  drunk- 
enness is  not,  of  course,  religion,  nor  is  the  most  intense  interest 
or  arduous  labor  in  reforming  others.  It  may  all  be  found  with- 
out even  a  belief  in  Christianity,  and  in  those  who  discard  all  re- 
ligion. It  therefore  is  not  to  be  elevated  above  piety  in  pastors 
and  churches,  though  even  like  warm  political  zeal  or  zeal  for 
the  security  of  any  philanthropic  or  worldly  object,  it  may  well 
put  some  to  the  blush.  We  mention  these  things,  because  cor- 
rect language  in  these  popular  tracts  is  all-important.  With  a 
few  corrections,  and  a  better  likeness  of  the  "  Major-General," 
we  could  wish  to  see  this  tract  scattered  throughout  the  na- 
tion. 

Temperance  publications  now  began  to  pour  from 
the  press,  thus  affording  the  best  evidence  of  onward 
progress  towards  the  nation's  ultimate  recovery  from 
the  thraldom  of  its  besetting  sin. 

Says  Dr.  John  Marsh :  — 


168  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

"We  have  at  no  period  been  flooded  with  so  much  interesting 
intelligence  from  every  quarter.  The  public  mind,  well  pre- 
pared by  the  long,  untiring  labors  of  the  friends  of  temperance, 
is  now  almost  universally  yielding  to  the  summons  of  surrender 
from  the  bold  and  persevering  Washington  reformers.  Two 
glorious  meetings  have  been  held  recently  in  Boston.  One  on 
Thanksgiving-day,  in  Brattle-Street  Church,  for  praise,  and 
another. on  Christmas-day,  in  Faneuil  Hall.  The  great  work 
loses  none  of  its  interest ;  eight  thousand  have  here,  during  the 
year,  signed  the  city  pledge,  eight  thousand  the  Washington 
pledge,  four  thousand  the  Catholic,  twenty  thousand  in  all.  Over 
twenty  lecturers  are  now  out,  lecturing  in  the  country,  and 
John  Hawkins  is  cannonading  every  strong  fortification. 

On  the  8th  of  January,  Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to 
Boston,  and,  as  appears  from  the  Mercantile  Journal, 
addressed  the  Washington  Temperance  Society:  — 

At  the  first  anniversary  of  the  Boston  Temperance  Society, 
held  last  evening,  the  Marlboro'  Chapel  was  crowded  in  every 
part ;  many  persons  left  the  doors,  being  unable  t6  enter.  The 
sight  was  impressive  to  witness ;  such  a  mass  assembled  for  so 
good  a  cause.  Thomas  A.  Davis,  President  of  the  society, 
in  a  brief  and  appropriate  address,  described  the  operations 
and  success  of  the  society  during  the  past  year,  which  have 
been  truly  cheering  and  encouraging.  After  which  the  drunk- 
ard's friend,  John  H.  W.  Hawkins,  riveted  the  attention  of  the 
immense  assembly  for  over  one  hour.  The  interest  in  this  able 
champion  for  total  abstinence  is  unabated  ;  he  was  listened  to 
with  the  same  attention  which  he  always  commands. 

His  journal  continues :  — 

Wednesday,  January  12th.  —  Took  the  cars  for  Norwich, 
Ct.  Thursday,  13th,  lectured  in  Central  Baptist  Church, 
Rev.  Mr.  Clark's ;  in  the  afternoon  of  Friday,  to  the  Cold 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  169 

Water  Army ;  at  night  to  a  crowded  house  in  the  Methodist 
Church. 

Returned  to  Boston,  and  on  Sunday,  16th,  addressed  a  large 
audience  in  the  Odeon. 

Monday,  17th.  —  Took  the  cars  for  Albany  and  Troy,  N.  Y. 
On  Tuesday  evening,  lectured  in  Rev.  Dr.  Sprague's  church ; 
the  house  was  not  crowded.  Wednesday,  19th,  in  the  Baptist 
Church  (Dr.  Welch's),  church  crowded. 

Thursday,  January  20,  1842.  —  Took  stage  to  Troy.  Lec- 
tured same  evening  to  a  crowded  house  of  men  only.  The 
Rensselaer  County  Convention  met  in  Dr.  Snodgrass'  church. 

Friday.  At  2  P.M.,  met  the  children  and  lectured  to  them  in 
Rev.  Dr.  Beamarr's  church  ;  a  great  deal  of  interest  is  felt ;  the 
children  were  much  affected.  At  night  lectured  to  a  very 
crowded  house  in  the  Methodist  Church  in  Fifth  Street. 

January  22.  —  Lectured  to  a  house  full  of  children  in  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Church  ;  at  night  in  the  Methodist  Church, 
State  Street. 

Sunday,  23.  —  Addressed  the  Sabbath  School  attached  to 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Snodgrass'  church.  Same  day,  at  3  P.M.,  lectured 
to  an  overflowing  congregation  in  Lansingburgh,  immediately 
after  the  lecture  of  Mr.  H.  W.  Dwight.  The  congregation 
was  deeply  affected.  Same  night  (Sunday),  lectured  to  a  large 
congregation  in  the  Methodist  Church,  State  Street ;  immedi- 
ately after  the  lecture  repaired  to  the  meeting  of  the  Washing- 
ton Temperance  Society,  in  session  at  their  hall.  Much  interest 
is  felt  in  the  cause  by  the  Trojans ;  they  are  wide  awake.* 

*(FROM  JOURNAL  OF  AMERICAN  TEMPERANCE  UNION.) 
TOUR  OF  JOHN  HAWKINS.  —  Our  friend  Hawkins,  during  the  month 
of  January,  made  an  excursion  from  Boston  to  Troy,  Albany,  and  some 
other  places  in  New  York.  On  the  18th,  he  spoke  in  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Sprague's  Church,  Albany,  and  on  the  19th,  in  Dr.  Welch's.  On  the  20th, 
he  attended  the  Rensselaer  County  Convention  at  Troy,  with  Hon.  H. 
W.  Dwight.  On  his  return  to  Boston,  he  furnished  tho  following  inter- 
esting items  respecting  the  work  at  Troy  :  — 

A  physician  and  surgeon,  for  the  last  ten  years  intemperate,  and  fov1 
15 


170  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

The  state  of  his  feelings  at  this  time  may  be  learned 

the  last  two  or  three  years  grossly  so,  signed  the  pledge  just  before  Christ- 
mas, and  carried  his  pledge  certificate  as  a  Christinas  present  to  his  mother. 
He  was  a  lost  son,  restored  after  hope  had  expired. 

Mr.  K.  was  picked  up  in  the  street,  in  the  night,  drunk  —  head  lying 
on  the  curb-stone.  A  four-horse  stage  passed  over  the  ground  immedi- 
ately after  he  was  removed.  He  belonged  to  a  highly  respectable  family 
—  ruined  by  fashionable  tippling  —  visited  by  Washingtonians  and  in- 
duced to  sign  the  pledge — now  looks  well. 

A  wholesale  hardware  merchant,  connected  with  the  highest  circles, 
went  from  fashionable  drinking  to  the  most  abandoned  drunkenness,  rap- 
idly —  family  broken  up  —  he  had  delirium  tremens  repeatedly,  and  was 
considered  a  hopeless  case  till  a  Washingtonian  got  him  to  sign  the  pledge. 
He  is  now  very  active  in  the  temperance  cause,  and  doing  good  —  restored 
to  his  family  and  now  happy. 

A  young  man,  son  of  an  elder  in  a  church,  became  intemperate  soon 
after  leaving  college  —  was  mortified  by  a  public  exposure  —  signed  the 
pledge,  and  was  asked  to  drink  wine  at  his  father's  table  afterwards, — 
thus  far  stands  firm,  though  his  father  opposes  the  temperance  move- 
ment. If  this  man  falls,  will  not  his  father  one  day  see  blood  on  his  rai- 
ment ? 

In  one  instance  a  reformed  drunkard  (who  had  been  generally  known 
as  an  abandoned  case,  lost  to  friends,  honor,  and  happiness),  went  to  an 
elder  in  the  church,  and  claimed  his  influence  and  support  in  maintaining 
his  pledge,  adding,  "  How  can  I  be  expected  to  hold  on  when  such  men 
as  you  offer  wine  freely  at  public  entertainments  ?  "  The  elder  confessed 
afterwards  that  he  was  conscience-smitten,  gave  up  his  wine,  and  signed 
the  pledge. 

There  is  now  an  old  gentleman  there  who  is  a  professing  Christian  — 
has  four  sons ;  the  father  opposed  the  temperance  movement  from  the 
first  —  his  breath  smells  of  wine  —  his  sons  have  all  been  hard  fashionable 
drinkers  —  the  hostility  of  the  father  operates  to  prevent  his  sons  from 
signing  the  pledge.  The  old  man  thinks  he  has  done  well  enough  with- 
out the  pledge,  and  is  blind  to  the  danger  of  his  children.  He  has  been 
seen  the  worse  for  liquor,  while,  from  his  position,  he  should  be  an  exam- 
ple of  piety. 

The  whole  history  of  the  work  here  has  been  interesting  ;  the  most  un- 
likely instrumentalities  have  been  most  powerful.  Since  the  visit  of  Pol- 
lard and  Wright,  the  fire  has  been  kindling  "  at  the  bottom  of  the  grate," 
and  slowly  burning  up  through,  so  that  it  may  truly  be  said  that  the  most 
abject  cases  have  been  more  easily  reached  than  the  drunkards  in  high 


LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  171 

from  the  following  letter  to  his  sister,  written  in  the 
midst  of  these  labors  :  — 

TROY,  N.  Y.,  Jan.  21,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER,  —  Your  very  kind  and  affectionate  let- 
ter, bearing  date  Dec.  30th,  came  to  hand  after  my  return  from 
a  tour  of  duty.  It  afforded  me  much  heartfelt  pleasure  to  hear 
from  you.  Indeed,  I  found  comfort  in  taking  your  old  letters 

life.  I  think  it  may  be  affirmed,  without  doubt,  that  the  very  general  re- 
formation of  the  working  classes  has.  shamed  some  of  the  fashionable  fam- 
ilies into  approbation  of  the  cause.  The  drunkenness  of  the  genteel 
classes  is  more  conspicuous  now  than  formerly,  and  the  idea  that  they 
should  be  sinking  while  the  poverty-stricken  portion  are  rising  to  comfort 
under  the  influence  of  the  pledge,  is  mortifying  to  their  pride.  A  large 
number  of  heads  of  families,  who  have  been  accustomed  to  high  life  and 
fashionable  use  of  wine,  &c.,  &c.,  have  within  a  few  days  signed  the 
pledge.'  A  new  eociety  has  been  formed,  of  which  the  Mayor  of  the  city 
is  President.  It  is  open  to  all,  and  promises  to  sweep  away  the  fashion- 
able indulgence  at  parties  and  public  festivals. 

A  circumstance  occurred  in  Troy,  some  time  since,  which  proves  the 
truth  of  the  old  adage,  "  When  rogues  fall  out,"  &c.  One  deacon  had  a 
ball  at  his  house.  A  committee  of  the  church  waited  upon  him  to  disci- 
pline him  for  it,  one  of  whom,  another  deacon,  was  engaged  in  the  brew- 
ery business.  While  urging  upon  his  brother  the  impropriety  of  his 
conduct,  in  allowing  balls  at  his  house,  he  was  asked  the  following  ques- 
tion, which,  it  strikes  me,  was  rather  a  leading  one,  as  the  lawyers  say  : 
"  Which  do  you  think  has  done  the  most  injury,  my  ball,  or  your  brew- 
ing ale  and  making  drunkards  ?  "  But  the  brewing  deacon  was  not  to 
be  put  down ;  so  he  asked  in  reply  :  "  If  it  is  wrong  for  me  to  brew,  is  it 
right  for  you  to  furnish  me  damaged  grain  for  my  brewery  ?  "  And  so 
we  go. 

In  Saratoga,  the  population  is  two  thousand  five  hundred.  Two 
thousand  have  already  signed  the  pledge,  and  the  work  is  progressing. 

Washington  County,  N.  Y.,  is  under  the  labors  of  Mr.  Hyde,  a  re- 
formed drunkard.  Five  thousand  five  hundred  have  signed  the  pledge  in 
two  months.  He  was  urged  by  his  brother  to  come  to  Troy,  in  the  hope 
that  he  would  be  induced  to  sign  the  pledge  for  his  own  safety.  He  came, 
signed,  and  went  back  and  commenced  lecturing,  and  has  been  constantly 
employed  ever  since,  and  now  has  engagements  for  every  day  till  the  4th 
of  March. 


172  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

with  me  in  my  valise,  and  occasionally  reading  them.  The 
Lord  has  done  great  things  for  me  ;  blessed  be  his  holy  name. 
The  language  of  my  heart  is 

"  Daily  in  his  grace  to  grow, 

And  ever  in  his  faith  abide ; 
Only  Jesus  will  I  know, 
And  Jesus  crucified." 

You  know,  my  dear  sister,  in  a  great  measure,  the  heavy 
weight  of  responsibility  that  rests  upon  me.  Oh,  how  I  feel 
sometimes,  when  I  look  back  upon  my  ill-spent  life,  and  the 
narrow  escape  of  falling  into  a  drunkard's  grave,  and  into  a 
drunkard's  hell  ! 

My  poor  heart  says,  Praise  the  Lord,  and  I  know  yours 
does  also.  A  brother,  father,  husband,  and  son,  saved  by  grace. 
I  bless  God  for  the  special  blessings  that  attend  my  labors 
wherever  I  go.  I  am  now  in  Troy,  and  shall  remain  here,  and 
in  Albany,  until  Wednesday  next,  when  I  return  to  Boston. 
On  Thursday  I  have  been  asked  to  preach  a  dedication  ser- 
mon in  a  new  Protestant  Methodist  Church  at  Maiden,  a  few 
miles  from  Boston.  The  text  I  shall  take,  from  which  I  am 
preparing  a  discourse,  is  in  Leviticus,  10 :  8,  9,  10,  11 :  "And 
the  Lord  spake  unto  Aaron,  saying,  Do  not  drink  wine  nor 
strong  drink,  thou,  nor  thy  sons  with  thee,  when  ye  go  into  the 
tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  lest  ye  die ;  it  shall  be  a  statute 
forever  throughout  your  generations  :  And  that  ye  may  put 
difference  between  holy  and  unholy,  and  between  unclean  and 
clean ;  And  that  ye  may  teach  the  children  of  Israel  all  the 
statutes  which  the  Lord  hath  spoken  unto  them  by  the  hand 
of  Moses."  My  dear  sister,  pray  for  me,  that  God  may  sustain 
me  in  this  stupendous  work.  Nothing  but  the  grace  of  God 
can  sustain  me.  I  am  very  little  with  my  family  ;  I  am  now 
two  hundred  miles  from  them,  and  may  be  in  another  week 
two  hundred  miles  from  them  another  way.  They  are  well 
and  comfortable ;  indeed,  Elizabeth  has  entered  a  private  school, 
one  of  the  best  in  Boston,  kept  by  Mrs.  Dwight,  an  accom- 


LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  173 

plished  teacher.  For  my  sake,  she  says  she  will  take  especial 
pains  with  her ;  Elizabeth  likes  her  very  much ;"  her  teacher 
will  instruct  her  also  in  the  languages.  I  never  saw  a  child 
improve  so  much  as  Hannah  does ;  she  loves  her  Bible,  and 
walks  so  circumspectly.  I  love  slyly  to  watch  her  movements 
when  at  home,  there  is  so  much  of  the  lady  in  them ;  Elizabeth 
can't  help  seeing  it,  and  takes  the  hint.  Little  Sallie  is  one 
of  the  sweetest  children  I  ever  knew ;  the  most  affectionate. 
"We  cannot  help  loving  her ;  everybody  loves  her.  She  has 
become  an  excellent  singer.  On  Christmas-day  we  held  a 
meeting  of  the  children  in  Faneuil  Hall.  The  hall  was  a  per- 
fect jam ;  and  little  Sallie  rose  up  amidst  the  acclamations  of 
the  multitude,  on  the  platform,  Dr.  Pierce  and  myself  standing 
by  her  side.  She  sang  most  splendidly,  "  Away,  away,  the 
bowl ! "  without  the  least  apparent  embarrassment.  Arthur 
improves  also.  I  want  William  George  to  see  Mr.  Holmes, 
and  say  to  him  that  we  are  all  well. 

I  should  have  answered  your  letter  before  this,  but  was  wait- 
ing to  know  whether  the  committee  would  send  me  South ;  they 
have  not  determined  yet.  I  shall  write  you,  if  they  make  up 
their  minds  to  send  me  to  "Washington  with  Mr.  Dwight.  I 
am  glad  to  learn  that  "William  George  is  in  earnest  about  the 
salvation  of  his  soul.  It  pleases  me  to  hear  also  that  you  are 
getting  well,  and  that  Eleanora  and  Elizabeth  are  doing  well. 
I  thought  it  best  to  let  William  George  remain  until  spring ;  in 
the  mean  time  I  want  James  to  be  ready,  by  a  week  or  two's 
notice,  if  possible.  Give  my  love  to  mother,  and  tell  her  Han- 
nah is  preparing  a  letter  for  her. 

I  arrived  in  Albany  last  Monday,  17th,  direct  from  Boston 
On  the  day  of  my  arrival,  Governor  William  II.  Seward,  of 
New  York,  with  many  other  distinguished  gentlemen,  signed  the 
total-abstinence  pledge.  I  lectured  two  evenings  in  Albany, 
tlnTi  went  to  Troy,  which  is  only  six  miles.  Here  the  work  of 
reform  has  gone  on  to  an  amazing  extent.  The  mayor  of  the 
city  of  Troy,  with  more  than  one  hundred  of  the  most  respect- 
15* 


174  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

able  wine-drinkers  have  not  thought  it  disgraceful  to  sign  a 
pledge  of  total  abstinence.  Many  thousands  have  signed  the 
pledge  here  and  in  Albany.  Saratoga  Springs  has  a  population 
of  two  thousand  five  hundred  souls,  all  told  ;  two  thousand  have 
signed  the  pledge,  and  they  are  working  rapidly  into  the  five 
hundred.  If  we  keep  on,  the  whole  world  will  be  sober. 

The  most  difficult  to  reform  is  the  moderate  drinker,  because 
he  thinks  he  is  possessed  of  all  the  fortitude  in  the  world.  But 
we  must  remember,  «  Let  him  who  thinketh  he  standeth  take 
heed  lest  he  fall."  Fifteen  thousand  have  signed  the  pledge  in 
Boston  during  the  past  year !  I  have  occasionally  sent  you 
papers  with  information  relative  to  the  cause  of  temperance.  I 
shall  continue  to  send  them  every  opportunity.  I  must  now 
close  by  asking  you  and  all  my  friends  to  continue  praying  for 
me,  that  God  may  keep  me  humble.  I  want  William  George, 
my  son,  to  write  me  immediately;  a  letter  also  from  you  ;  now 
don't  neglect  this.  I  should  like  to  pay  postage  on  a  letter 
from  my  brother  Archibald.  I  remain,  dear  sister, 
Your  affectionate  brother, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  the  26th  of  February  Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to 
Boston,  and  on  the  next  day  was  present  and  preached 
his  discourse  at  the  dedication  services  in  Maiden,  and 
on  the  next  lectured  to  a  crowded  house  in  Roxbury. 

The  sudden  death  of  Mr.  Holmes,  the  father  of  the 
two  children  he  had  taken  under  his  protection,  calls 
forth  the  following  letter :  — 

BOSTON,  January  29,  1842. 

REV.  JOHN  BAXLEY  :  Dear  Sir,  —  Your  letter,  dated  Jan- 
uary 21,  has  just  been  received,  and  would  have  been  received 
and  answered  before  this,  but  I  was  absent  from  the  city.  I 
have  just  returned  from  Albany  and  Troy,  N.  Y.  I  was  some- 
what astonished  to  hear  of  the  sudden  death  of  Mr.  Holmes, 
but  did  not  expect  in  the  course  of  nature  he  could  survive 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  175 

long,  knowing  his  bad  health.  I  presume,  however,  there  is  no 
necessity  for  my  coming  on  immediately.  I  shall,  God  willing, 
be  in  Baltimore  the  last  of  February  with  the  Hon.  H.  W. 
Dwight,  on  a  temperance  tour  to  the  city  of  Washington.  I 
hope  the  property  of  Mr.  Holmes  will  not  be  sold,  as  there  will 
be  no  absolute  necessity  for  it,  until  I  come  on.  I  wrote  to 
Sister  Frances,  from  Troy.  I  mentioned  a  dedication  I  had  to 
attend  on  the  27th,  at  Maiden.  It  was  indeed  a  sublime  affair. 
I  have  not  time  to  write  the  particulars,  nor  a  long  letter.  I 
acknowledge  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  William  George  ;  was 
glad  to  hear  from  him.  I  hope  he  will  be  in  readiness  to  come 
on  with  me  when  I  return.  Hemember  me  to  mother,  and  all 
inquiring  friends.  We  are  all  well,  and  doing  well.  As  re- 
gards myself,  I  now  weigh  one  hundred  and  ninety  pounds. 
I  remain,  yours,  &c. 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

The  Hon.  H.  W.  Dwight,  above  referred  to,  was  at 
one  time  a  distinguished  lawyer,  of  high  rank  in  the  pro- 
fession, and  whose  well-known  talents  would*  have  ele- 
vated him,  it  is  said,  to  the  highest  posts  of  honor  in  our 
country,  but  for  the  "  mocker  "  wine.  He  was  a  native 
of  Stockbridge,  Mass.,  and  was  induced  during  Mr. 
Hawkins'  lectures  in  that  State  to  abandon  forever  the 
use  of  intoxicating  drinks.  Like  the  reformers,  he  was 
unwilling  to  remain  inactive,  and  very  soon  became  an 
efficient  temperance  lecturer.  How  Mr.  Dwight  became 
associated  with  Mr.  Hawkins,  the  following  letter, 
which  we  extract  from  the  Journal  of  the  American 
Temperance  Union,  will  explain  :  — 

(liEV.   LOUIS    DWIGFIT   TO   JOHN    TAPPAN,  ESQ.,  OF   BOSTON.) 

STOCKBHIDGE,  Oct.  4,  1841. 
MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  My  brother  Henry  signed  the  pledge  of 


176  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

total  abstinence  at  Pittsfield,  Sabbath  before  last,  and  made  a 
short  speech  on  the  occasion,  before  a  crowded  meeting  of  the 
Washington  Temperance  Society.  Since  that  time  there  have 
been  the  most  favorable  indications  that  the  reformation  might 
become  permanent.  On  Saturday  last  I  carried  him  to  Pitts- 
field,  where  he  was  expected  to  address  the  meeting  again  last 
evening.  He  was  received  in  the  first  instance  with  three  times 
three  most  hearty  cheers,  and  great  expectation  and  delight 
was  expressed  on  Saturday  that  he  had  come  again.  On 
Friday  morning  last,  before  I  engaged  to  carry  him  to  Pitts- 
field,  he  came  to  me  and  proposed  of  his  own  accord  to  engage 
in  the  service  of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society  as  a 
means  of  usefulness  and  confirming  habits  of  temperance.  He 
requested  me  to  write  to  Boston  in  his  behalf,  and  offer  his 
services  to  the  society  on  such  terms  as  they  might  propose. 
He  said  it  was  not  so  much  for  compensation  as  for  usefulness 
that  he  was  willing  to  engage  in  this  service.  If  the  society 
will  employ  and  encourage  him,  it  may  be  greatly  useful  both 
to  him  and  others.  He  spoke  of  Mr.  Hawkins  as  a  person 
with  whom  he  should  like  to  be  associated,  and  my  opinion  is 
that  they  would  work  well  together.  If  Mr.  Hawkins  can 
come  this  way  and  go  over  the  county  of  Berkshire  with  him, 
they  might  then  move  off  together  in  some  other  direction. 
Your  friendly  aid  in  bringing  about  an  arrangement  of  this 
kind  would  be  most  gratefully  acknowledged  by  him  and  his 
friends.  Please  to  write  me  as  soon  as  convenient  to  yourself 
whether  an  arrangement  of  this  kind  can  be  made. 
Most  respectfully  and  affectionately, 

Your  friend, 

Louis  DWIGHT. 

This  arrangement  was,  without  doubt,  happily  ef- 
fected, as  we  find  frequent  mention  in  the  journal  of  Mr. 
Hawkins  of  his  friend  Col.  H.  W.  Dwight,  and  of  their 
having  addressed  the  same  audience  upon  several  occa- 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  177 

sions.  We  have  every  reason  for  saying  that  their 
acquaintance  was  of  a  mutually  gratifying  character. 

Mr.  Hawkins  possessed  the  singular  power  of  adapt- 
ing his  addresses  to  the  constantly  varying  character  of 
his  audiences.  He  seems  to  have  been  equally  suc- 
cessful whether  he  is  addressing  the  inmates  of  a  prison 
or  of  a  poorhouse  ;  —  a  popular  assembly  or  the  mem- 
bers of  a  State  legislature.  He  was  exceedingly  happy 
in  his  efforts  to  influence  children.  Many  a  little  child 
has  gone  forth  from  his  lectures  a  voluntary  missionary 
to  the  neighborhood  where  they  resided,  and  obtained 
hundreds  of  signers  to  the  pledge.  His  influence  upon 
the  sailor  was  also  great.  During  his  days  of  rest  in 
Boston,  he  frequently  visited  the  ships  of  our  navy, 
and  induced  many  of  their  crews  to  abandon  the  use 
of  intoxicating  liquor.  One  result  of  his  efforts  was 
the  formation  of  a  Temperance  Society  among  the 
sailors  on  board  the  frigate  Columbus,  at  that  time 
stationed  at  the  Charlestown  navy  yard.  On  Sunday, 
30th  December,  there  was  a  meeting  in  the  morning  on 
board  the  schooner  Grampus,  and  addresses  made  in  a 
very  forcible  manner,  it  is  said,  by  delegates  from  the 
Columbus  Society.  "  In  the  afternoon, "  says  the 
Mercantile  Journal,  "  Messrs.  Hawkins  and  Holbrook 
addressed,  by  invitation,  the  sailors,  in  a  most  affecting 
manner  and  with  good  success.  The  commander  and 
officers  generally  have  signed  the  pledge,  together  with 
most  of  the  crew.  They  have  now  an  excellent  and 
efficient  society  on  board  each  ship.  Several  sailors 
gave  very  interesting  experiences.  This  day  all  liquor 
is  to  be  sent  on  shore,  being  no  longer  considered 
worthy  to  be  a  '  messmate.'  " 

These  services  for  the  sailors  were  performed  by  Mr. 


178  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Hawkins  upon  days  which  he  terms  in  his  Journal 
"  days  of  rest. "  Another  result  of  these  labors  in 
behalf  of  temperance  was  the  voluntary  relinquishment 
of  the  "  spirit  rations  "  on  board  many  of  our  national 
ships.  "  We  understand, "  said  one  of  the  morning 
papers  after  the  above  meeting,  "  that  $2,500  were  yes- 
terday paid  to  the  seamen  on  board  the  receiving  ship 
Columbus,  in  lieu  of  spirit  rations,  which  they  had 
voluntarily  relinquished.  We  also  learn  that  the  crew 
of  the  U.  S.  schooner  Grampus,  commanded  by  Lieut. 
Van  Brunt,  which  vessel  is  now  ready  to  sail  on  a 
cruise,  all,  with  the  exception  of  ten  or  eleven,  receive 
money  instead  of  grog.  It  is  time  that  the  custom  of 
allowing  spirit  rations  on  board  our  ships  was  abol- 
ished." 

The  temperance  movement  was  now  extending  over 
the  whole  length  and  breadth  of  the  land.  The  simple 
but  powerful  words  of  the  temperance  advocates  oper- 
ated like  a  potent  enchantment  wherever  heard,  trans- 
forming the  miserable  inebriate  into  a  sober  and  useful 
citizen,  dilapidated  and  wretched  tenements  into  abodes 
of  peace  and  plenteousness,  where  honest  Industry 
smiled  at  her  accumulating  joys. 

In  the  far-off  West  the  cause  was  making  rapid 
progress.  Intelligence  of  the  movements  in  those  cities 
visited  by  the  subject  of  this  memoir  in  his  youth, 
while  they  revived  sad  memories  of  early  delinquencies, 
filled  his  heart  with  inexpressible  gladness.  In  Cincin- 
nati, by  the  first  of  January,  1842,  the  number  of 
teetotalers  was  about  eight  thousand .'  of  whom  nine 
hundred  had  been  confirmed  drunkards.  In  Dayton, 
Columbus,  and  Chilicothe  there  was  an  average  of 
over  one  thousand ;  in  St.  Louis,  over  two  thousand- 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS.  179 

at  Louisville  a  large  Washington  Society  was  formed. 
The  whole  number  in  Ohio  alone  who  had  embraced 
the  total-abstinence  principle  of  the  new  movement 
was  about  thirty  thousand. 

This  movement,  commencing  among  the  humble 
and  the  unknown,  now  began  to  command  the  respect 
of  every  class  ;  and  for  the  reason  that  observation  had 
begun  to  disclose  the  fact  that  drunkenness  was  not 
confined  to  the  class  of  day -laborers,  but  was  making  its 
terrible  inroads  into  every  rank  and  profession.  Legis- 
lative temperance  societies  were  organized,  and  greai 
respect  was  paid  to  the  reformatory  movement.  On 
Wednesday,  February  2d,  agreeable  to  a  public  notice, 
a  meeting  of  the  members  of  the  Massachusetts  Legis- 
lature was  held  at  the  Hall  of  the  Representatives,  for 
the  purpose  of  forming  a  Legislative  Temperance 
Society.  The  meeting  was  of  a  highly  interesting 
character.  It  was  resolved  that  it  is  expedient  to  revive 
the  Legislative  Temperance  Society,  founded  in  1833, 
on  total-abstinence  principles.  The  meeting  was 
addressed  by  Messrs.  Hawkins  and  Holbrook,  and 
subsequently  by  Messrs.  Walter  Channing,  M.  D., 
Emory  Washburn,  and  Foster  Hooper. 

On  the  first  of  January  the  Pennsylvania  Temper- 
ance Convention  began  its  session  in  Harrisburgh.  By 
invitation,  it  is  said,  the  Legislature  adjourned,  and 
proceeded  in  a  body,  with  the  Governor  at  their  head, 
to  the  place  of  meeting,  and  for  half  a  day,  listene  I 
to  the  deliberations. 

Nor  did  the  movement  rest  here.  The  occasional 
reformation  of  individuals  who  had  formerly  been 
members  of  both  branches  of  the  National  legislature, 
as  well  as  of  State  legislatures,  led  the  people  to  ask 


180  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

whether  there  might  not  be  a  greater  degree  of  intem- 
perance prevailing  at  Washington  than  had  yet  been 
disclosed. 

The  reformation  of  the  Hon.  H.  W.  Dwight,  and  of 
others  who  had  held  posts  of  influence  in  the  country, 
members  of  Congress,  lawyers,  and  physicians,  had  al- 
ready been  made  public.  The  affecting  circumstances 
attending  the  restoration  of  the  Hon.  T.  F.  Marshall, 
of  Ky.,  to  habits  of  sobriety,  is  thus  related  by  Dr. 
Marsh  in  his  Journal  of  February  1st,  1842  :  — 

At  the  meeting  of  Congress,  some  of  the  reformed  inebriates 
of  Baltimore  were  producing  an  excited  feeling  among  the 
citizens  of  every  class,  especially  drunkards  and  hard  drinkers, 
and  many  were  renouncing  their  cups  and  signing  the  pledge. 
But  Dr.  Sewall  had  prepared  himself  to  reach  and  electrify 
the  intelligent  and  reflecting  mind,  by  illustrating  his  views  of 
the  pain,  the  sufferings,  and  destruction  to  which  the  poor 
drunkard  is  doomed,  by  means  of  transparent  drawings  of  his 
stomach  in  the  various  stages  from  moderate  drinking  to  delir- 
ium tremens.  Some  thousands  attended  his  lectures  ;  many 
members  of  Congress  said  his  exhibitions  should  be  made  all 
over  the  country  ;  and  grog-sellers  were  heard  to  declare,  that 
if  their  business  made  such  stomachs,  they  would  abandon  it 
forever. 

Amid  this  excited  state  of  public  feeling,  while  all  were 
hoping  for  some  blow  which  would  drive  the  demon  Intemper- 
ance from  our  capital,  yet  none  knowing  whence  it  would  come, 
one  of  the  most  talented  men  on  the  floor  of  the  House,  the 
Hon.  Thomas  F.  Marshall,  of  Kentucky,  found  himself  in  the 
very  jaws  of  destruction.  This  gentleman  had  indulged  to 
"Teat  excess,  and  on  entering  the  House  on  the  evening  of  the 
7th  of  January,  he  found  himself  nervously  affected  to  a  de- 
gree th  alarmed  him.  The  sensation  was  accompanied  by  a 
raging  th  for  strong  drink.  Terrified  at  the  extent  of  his 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    \V.    HAWKINS.  181 

passion,  he  resolutely  determined  to  break  at  once  from  his  de- 
structive habits.  He  inquired  for  a  temperance  member,  and 
was  directed  to  the  Hon.  Mr.  Briggs,  who  drew  a  pledge, 
which  was  signed  by  Mr.  Marshall.  But  resolved  on  placing 
himself  beyond  the  power  of  temptation,  he  said  he  must  make 
a  public  confession,  and  join  one  of  the  temperance  societies 
of  the  city.  This  he  did  on  the  same  evening  at  a  temperance 
meeting  which  was  then  gathered  at  the  Medical  College. 

"  I  was  present,"  says  Dr.  Sewall  in  a  letter  before  us,  "  and 
saw  him  sign  the  pledge  of  total  abstinence,  after  which  he 
made  a  most  touching  speech.  Several  other  members  followed 
his  example.  Mr.  Marshall's  step  has  astonished  Congress. 
There  is  no  man  who  compares  with  him  in  debate." 

Our  limits  will  not  permit  an  extended  account  of 
the  meeting  above  referred  to.  The  Hon.  George  N. 
Briggs,  of  Mass.,  made  some  eloquent  and  touching  re- 
marks. The  National  Intelligencer  spoke  of  the  event 
as  one  of  the  most  thrilling  which  had  occurred  at 
any  of  the  meetings  at  the  national  capital.  A  new 
era  in  the  cause  of  temperance  then  began,  command- 
ing as  it  did,  the  services  of  the  highest  talent  in  the 
land.  Mr.  Marshall  in  concluding  his  remarks,  said :  — 

For  ten  years  past  I  have  been  a  politician  in  a  section  of 
the  country  where  candidates  for  office  are  expected  to  treat 
the  people,  and  drink  with  them ;  to  this  custom,  and  the  fes- 
tive board,  I  attribute  the  power  which  the  habit  of  intemper- 
ance gained  over  me.  Often  after  leaving  those  scenes  have  I 
resolved  never  to  repeat  them,  but  temptation  returning  the 
vow  has  again  and  again  been  broken.  Yet  I  never  thought 
myself  lost,  or  in  great  danger,  till  this  morning,  when  I  found 
upon  me,  a  quenchless,  hellish  thirst  for  drink.  I  was  alarmed ; 
it  followed  me  ;  a  crisis  had  come,  and  I  knew  it.  The  thought 
of  joining  a  temperance  society  occurred  to  me.  I  resolved 
1C 


182  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

upon  it,  and  went  to  an  honorable  gentleman  and  asked  if  he 
was  a  member  of  that  society  ;  he  answered  "  Yes."  I  asked  him 
to  draw  me  up  a  pledge,  and  to  do  it  quick,  that  I  might  exe- 
cute it.  I  did  so. 

Mr.  President,  the  age  of  miracles  is  past,  and  I  presume 
what  at  that  moment  occurred  to  me  is  explicable  on  familiar 
principles ;  but  the  fact  I  know,  that  when  my  hand  was  lifted 
from  the  paper,  that  appetite,  which  before  drove  me  almost  to 
madness,  was  gone. 

But  I  did  not  conceive  the  step  fully  taken  till  I  should  meet 
and  unite  with  you  here ;  for  there  is  peculiar  strength  in  the 
tie  of  honor  that  now  publicly  binds  us.  I  am  not  ashamed 
of  what  I  have  done.  I  wish  Congress  —  the  nation  to  know 
it.  No  doubt  many  will  laugh  when  the  intelligence  shall 
reach  them,  but  Sir,  if  I  redeem  my  pledge,  which  I  believe  I 
shall  do,  I  will  laugh  too. 

It  was  resolved,  thereupon,  to  send  Messrs.  Hawkins 
and  Dwight  to  Washington  the  latter  part  of  February, 
to  add  the  influence  of  their  examples  and  experience 
to  the  reformations  there  taking  place. 

In  the  mean  time  Mr.  Hawkins  was  not  idle,  as  may 
be  seen  from  his  journal.  On  the  6th  of  February  he 
again  addressed  the  sailors,  in  the  sail-loft  of  the  Navy 
Yard  in  Charlestown.  The  meeting  was  "  attended 
by  several  officers,  and  the  greater  portion  of  the  crew 
of  the  Columbus,  and  a  number  of  ladies  and  gentle- 
men from  Charlestown  and  Boston.  The  meeting  was 
addressed  with  great  power  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  who  was 
listened  to  with  great  attention  by  his  audience.  At 
the  close  of  his  address,  some  fifty  or  sixty  of  the  sea- 
men pressed  forward  and  signed  the  pledge." 

February  1.  —  Took  the  cars  for  Lowell ;  lectured  two  even- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W-    HAWKINS.  183 

ings  to  the  Washington  Temperance  Society,  in  the  Town 
Hall. 

Wednesday,  9.  —  Lectured  again  in  the  Representatives' 
Hall  in  the  State  House,  to  the  Legislative  Temperance  So- 
ciety. 

Thursday,  10th.  —  Andover.  In  the  evening  lectured  in  the 
North  Parish,  to  adults ;  on  Friday  afternoon  to  a  house 
crowded  with  children ;  and  at  night  to  an  overflowing  congre- 
gation of  men,  women,  and  children ;  much  interest  is  here 
felt  in  the  subject.  Saturday  evening  again  at  the  Marlboro' 
Chapel. 

Sunday,  February  13.  —  Lectured  to  an  overflowing  con- 
gregation in  Wayland,  in  the  Unitarian  Church ;  some  few  of 
the  members  opposed  to  the  cause. 

The  following  communication  from  Wayland,  pub- 
lished in  the  Mercantile  Journal,  will  be  read  with  in- 
terest :  — 

MR.  EDITOR, —  I  had  the  pleasure  of  hearing  Mr.  Hawkins 
address  the  good  citizens  of  Wayland  on  Sunday  evening ;  there 
was  a  full  house,  though  the  travelling  was  as  bad  as  I  ever 
knew  it;  but  this  only  goes  to  prove  the  intense  feeling  and 
Christian  spirit  which  exist  there  on  the  great  subject  of  tem- 
perance. He  took  up  a  variety  of  topics  which  the  progress 
of  the  cause  has  developed  and  is  daily  developing,  and  as  evi- 
dence that  he  touched  some  sensitive  chords  of  the  many  which 
vibrate  in  the  human  bosom,  a  number  came  to  the  altar  after 
the  address  and  signed  the  pledge ;  among  whom  I  observed 
an  old  gentleman,  nearly  threescore  years  and  ten,  who  for  a 
great  part  of  his  life  had  been  addicted  to  the  use  of  intoxi- 
cating drinks,  and  he  remarked  that  the  lecturer  had  stated  the 
cause  and  effects  of  intemperance  truly  and  fairly.  Another 
most  touching  scene,  occurred.  It  was  the  advance  to  the 
sacred  altar  of  two  men  who  were  twin  brothers,  of  about  forty 


184  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

years  of  age,  both  in  a  state  of  intoxication,  and  who  in  (hat 
condition  signed  the  pledge  of  total  abstinence  from  all  intoxi- 
cating drinks.  They  then  pledged  themselves  to  each  other, 
alternately,  using  the  term  brother  in  the  most  affecting  manner, 
—  they  had  at  times  been  estranged  from  each  other,  —  promis- 
ing most  faithfully  that  one  brother  should  not  lead  the  other 
into  temptation,  but  should  aid  him  to  the  utmost  of  his  power 
to  keep  that  sacred  pledge  to  which  they  had  just  affixed  their 
names,  in  the  presence  of  God  and  the  meeting  then  assem- 
bled. 

During  the  heart-stirring  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  the  case 
of  these  twin  brothers  had  by  entire  accident  been  so  minutely 
sketched,  one  of  them  told  me,  that  they  became  quite  angry ; 
but,  on  reflection,  they  acknowledged  the  truth  of  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins' remarks,  and  it  was  his  peculiar  power  which  finally 
brought  them  to  do  this  great  act,  which,  probably,  is  to  be  the 
means  of  the  ultimate  salvation  of  their  souls.  I  was  told  they 
came  from  a  neighboring  town  to  hear  Mr.  Hawkins  for  the 
first  time.  Only  think  for  a  moment ;  if  these  two  solitary 
beings  are  only  saved  from  degradation,  what  immense  and 
incalculable  good  was  done  in  this  single  evening!  The  fruits 
are  heavenly ;  restoring  to  society  two  unfortunate  beings,  who 
had  been  lost  to  themselves  and  the  community  for  twenty  years, 
and  making  them  good  husbands,  and  kind,  affectionate  fathers! 
Thanks  be  to  God,  that  heavenly  light  is  breaking  in  upon  us 
and  around  us  in  all  sections  of  our  favored  country.  In  a 
few  short  years  more,  a  drunkard,  I  trust,  will  not  be  found  in 
our  land,  and  the  use  of  intoxicating  beverages,  will  not  be 
known  or  recognized  by  a  single  human  being. 

It  is  proper  here  to  refer  to  the  peculiar  faculty  which 
Mr.  Hawkins  possessed  of  rendering  his  lectures  prac- 
tical and  effective  upon  his  audiences.  His  custom  on 
entering  a  city,  or  village,  which  he  generally  did  early 
in  the  day,  was  to  ascertain,  by  conversing  with  various 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  185 

individuals,  the  moral  and  social  condition  of  the  place. 
Oftentimes  parents  would  reveal  to  him  the  intemper- 
ance of  a  son  or  of  a  brother ;  children  would  solicit 
his  interposition  to  save  a  father  from  his  ruinous 
habits.  He  would  seek  information  as  to  the  general 
progress  of  temperance  in  the  place;  who  were  its 
friends,  and  who  its  enemies.  Any  peculiar  instances 
of  inebriation,  where  the  circumstances  were  of  an  af- 
fecting and  touching  kind,  he  made  his  own  ;  possess- 
ing a  retentive  memory,  he  never  forgot  them.  His 
judgment  indicated  which  of  these  instances  it  would  be 
proper  to  refer  to  in  his  lecture  in  the  evening.  He  was 
exceedingly  cautious  about  injuring  the  feelings  of  in- 
dividuals ;  never  relating  the  facts  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  lead  members  of  the  congregation  to  feel  uncomfort- 
able by  unnecessary  exposures  of  their  errors  or  mis- 
fortunes. But  wherever  there  had  been  notorious  in- 
justice, where  the  humble  and  unoffending  had  been 
wronged,  or  the  easily  tempted  drawn  into  sin,  he  was 
unsparing  in  the  utterance  of  his  condemnation,  often- 
times resorting  to  the  most  scathing  sarcasm. 

It  was  his  custom  also  to  make  himself  familiar  with 
all  the  "  gossip  "  of  the  village ;  not  for  the  purpose  of 
repeating  what  he  heard  to  the  injury  of  any  one,  but 
to  turn  it  over  in  his  mind  and  decide  what  part  of  it, 
if  any,  it  would  be  proper  to  use,  and  how  far  to  use 
it,  so  that  the  conscience  of  the  hearer  might  feel,  as  he 
pictured  the  evils  of  intemperance,  "  thou  art  the  man." 
Hundreds  of  families  in  the  land  have  detailed  to  him 
with  the  utmost  freedom  their  domestic  griefs,  brought 
about  by  the  evil  of  intemperance  ;  he  never  was  known 
to  betray  the  confidence  thus  reposed  in  him.  Many  a 
tale  of  human  suffering  has  he  heard,  with  tearful  eyes, 
16* 


186  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

which  his  lips  never  repeated  even  to  the  most  intimate 
of  his  friends  and  relatives. 

After  lecturing  in  East  Cambridge,  Brookline,  and 
Gloucester,  to  large  congregations,  and  with  his  usual 
good  success,  he  began  his  journey  southward,  to 
Washington,  on  Saturday,  February  19th. 

Took  steamboat  at  Providence,  at  dusk,  wind  blowing  so 
hard  that  we  put  into  Newport  for  the  night.  On  Sunday 
morning  raised  steam  and  left  at  four  o'clock  for  New  York, 
which  place  we  reached  at  6  P.M.  Remained  here  to  unite  in 
the  celebration  of  the  birthday  of  the  immortal  Washington,  in 
a  truly  temperance  style. 

The  22d  of  February,  1842,  was  noted  throughout 
the  country  for  great  and  splendid  temperance  meet- 
ings. In  Boston,  the  cradle  of  American  liberty  was 
filled  three  times  in  the  day,  while  the  greatest  enthu- 
siasm everywhere  prevailed.  Thousands  of  happy 
hearts  were  there  who  had  cast  off  the  chains  of  the 
most  galling  tyranny  that  ever  oppressed  the  human 
family.  There  was  a  feast  of  reason  and  a  flow  of 
soul,  unalloyed  by  the  presence  of  that  "  which  at 
the  last  biteth  like  a  serpent  and  stingeth  like  an  ad- 
der.* Great  was  the  rejoicing  in  Portland,  Me ;  the 

*(FROM  THE  MERCANTILE  JOURNAL  OF  FEB.  23.) 

Yesterday  was  a  day  memorable  in  the  annals  of  temperance.  The 
proceedings  in  various  places  which  we  have  heard  from,  were  conducted 
with  a  zeal  and  a  spirit  and  an  unanimity  in  the  highest  degree  gratifying 
to  all  who  take  an  interest  in  this  holy  cause,  and  calculated  to  excite  the 
most  sanguine  hopes  that  the  reign  of  intemperance  is  rapidly  approach- 
ing its  end. 

FANECIL  HALL,  Feb.  22d,  1842. 

Resolved,   That  on    this  occasion  we  would   reverently  offer  thanksgiving  to  Al- 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  187 

Washingtonians  were  out  in  large  numbers.  At  Prov- 
idence, R.  I.,  four  thousand,  including  a  little  army 
of  fifteen  hundred  "  cold  water  "  children,  with  .venty 
banners,  \  -com^anied  by  ^everal  bands  of  music, 
marched  to  the  several  churches  to  hear  addresses  by 
different  persons.  At  New  London  there  was  a  pro- 
cession of  three  thousand.  At  Cooperstown,  N.  Y. 
there  was  a  splendid  celebration.  At  Buffalo,  Geneva, 
Rome,  and  many  other  places,  the  people  were  out  in 
large  numbers,  with  music  and  with  banners,  declaring 
by  their  actions  that  the  nation  should  no  longer  be 
ruled  by  Turn. 

But  the  festival  in  New  York  surpassed  all  others  in 
its  extent,  beauty,  and  appropriateness ;  it  is  thus 
described  by  Dr.  Marsh  :  — 

The  Grand  Festival  at  Centre  Market  Hall,  on  the  birth- 
day of  our  immortal  Washington,  was  got  up  and  carried 
through  in  a  style  worthy  of  the  movement  with  which  it  was 
connected.  The  magnitude  of  the  halls,  their  appropriate 
decorations,  the  immense  crowd  of  people,  the  eloquence  of 
the  orators,  the  beauty  and  rich  supply  of  the  table,  the  hearty 
but  innocent  congratulations  of  the  guests,  the  pith  of  the 
sentiments,  and  the  power  of  the  temperance  odes,  sung  by 

mighty  God  for  the  signal  mercies  he  has  shown  to  the  cause  of  temperance,  in  that 
he  has  moved  the  souls  of  the  intemperate  to  undertake  the  great  work  of  their  own 
reformation,  and  with  results  equally  worthy  astonishment  and  gratitude. 

Resolved,  That  to  secure  to  the  reformed  the  great  blessings  which  have  become 
theirs,  the  friends  of  temperance  everywhere  are  called  upon  for  activo  sympathy  in 
their  behalf,  for  that  love  for  them  which  never  failuth,  for  that  steady  aid  and  assist- 
ance which  their  destitution  or  their  spiritual  weakness  may  demand. 

I!'  wired,  That  for  this  end,  the  comfort  and  support  of  the  reformed,  we  now  in 
tins  vast  assembly,  and  before  the  ever-seeing  God,  call  upon  him  who  manufacture 
»nd  upon  him  who  traffics  in  intoxicating  drinks,  and  in  all  kinds  of  them,  that  he 
would,  in  the  view  of  a  fearful  accountability,  and  the  spirit  of  a  true  sclf-siicrifice,  at 
once  and  forever  abandon  a  business  which  is  full  of  misery,  of  sin,  and  of  death. 


188  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

thousands  of  voices  ;  these,  gratifying  as  they  were,  did  not  fill 
our  vision  so  much  as  the  object  of  the  festival,  and  the  char- 
acter and  circumstances  of  the  many  there,  once  poor  unfortu- 
nate drunkards,  now  disenthralled,  reformed  men,  gathered 
together  with  their  "  happy  families,"  as  John  Hawkins  calls 
them,  to  rejoice  in  their  wonderful  deliverance ;  —  the  whole 
forming  an  entirely  new  era  in  the  moral  history  of  our  great 
city. 

The  four  halls  over  the  Centre  Market  give  a  floor  of  two 
hundred  and  seventy-five  feet  by  forty  feet  on  Centre,  and 
eighty  feet  by  fifty  feet  on  Grand  Street.  They  were  all 
thrown  into  one,  and  splendidly  decorated  with  flags,  transpar- 
encies, portraits,  temperance  banners,  and  appropriate  devices, 
and  brilliantly  lighted  with  gas.  Tables  of  more  than  three 
hundred  and  thirty  feet  were  placed  in  various  parts  of  the  halls, 
but  leaving  the  whole  centre  as  a  promenade,  and  were, 
through  the  liberality  of  our  citizens,  especially  the  efficiency 
of  the  female  temperance  societies,  loaded  and  even  beautifully 
adorned,  with  every  variety  of  cakes,  sandwiches,  smoked  beef, 
tongues,  crackers,  cheese,  apples,  raisins,  &c.,  &c.,  with  two 
thousand  tumblers  of  clear  cold  water.  At  six  o'clock  the 
doors  were  thrown  open,  and  for  an  hour  and  a  half  the  access 
was  crowded  with  the  thronging  guests,  who  could  not  have  been 
little  less  than  three  thousand  in  number,  one  thousand  of  whom 
were  females.  During  their  entrance,  music  was  given  by  a 
fine  brass  band  provided  for  the  occasion. 

Precisely  at  seven  the  vast  assemblage  was  called  to  order 
by  the  Grand  Marshals,  Dr.  E.  Kirby,  and  Mr.  E.  L.  Snow,  at 
the  two  stands  provided  for  speakers,  when  letters  of  apology 
for  absence  were  read  by  Rev.  J.  Marsh,  and  Mr.  E.  Burns, 
Committee  on  Invitation,  from  Deacon  Moses  Grant,  Rev.  John 
Pierpont,  Lewis  C.  Levin,  Dr.  Walter  Channing,  Christian 
Keener,  William  K.  Mitchell,  and  other  gentlemen,  expressing 
the  warmest  interest  in  the  occasion,  and  the  most  devout  thank- 
fulness for  the  progress  of  the  cause,  each  also  giving  an 


LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  189 

appropriate  sentiment.  One  of  the  -stands  was  now  to  be 
occupied  by  the  Hon.  Theodore  Frelinghuysen,  but  unfortu- 
nately he  had  been  prevented  from  an  entrance  by  the  great 
concourse  at  the  door.  The  Rev.  E.  N.  Kirk  was  called  to  fill 
his  place,  lio,  though  without  the  advantage  of  premeditation, 
closely  riveted  the  attention  of  all  within  the  sound  of  his  voice 
for  half  an  hour,  while  on  the  other  stand,  far  distant,  John 
Hawkins,  the  ever  interesting  and  powerful  advocate  of  the 
cause,  poured  forth  his  full  and  grateful  soul  in  strains  of 
thrilling  eloquence.  At  eight  o'clock  thanks  were  rendered  for 
the  great  temperance  reformation,  and  the  divine  blessing  was 
implored  on  the  festival  by  the  Rev.  Drs.  Patton  and  Bangs, 
when  the  collation  was  regularly  but  most  rapidly  dispatched, 
and  with  a  hilarity  and  good  humor  that  showed  that  temper- 
ance is  no  austere  and  lugubrious  service.  By  the  hour  of 
nine  order  was  again  restored,  the  immense  company  having 
returned  to  their  seats,  when  the  regular  sentiments  were  given 
by  the  Grand  Marshal,  and  repeated  by  the  assistant  marshals 
through  the  length  of  the  halls.  Each  sentiment  was  responded 
to  by  music  from  the  band  ;  three  of  them  by  Temperance 
songs  appropriate  to  the  sentiments,  which  were  sung  by 
the  whole  assembly,  whose  voices  were  as  the  sound  of  many 
waters.  Volunteer  sentiments  succeeded,  with  short  addresses 
and  songs,  and  oft  repeated  airs  from  the  bands,  which  continued 
until  the  hour  of  eleven.  At  the  fourth  regular  sentiment  two 
reformed  men  related  their  experiences  on  the  stands,  and  at 
the  sixth,  expressive  of  commendation  of  female  charity,  the 
stands  were  occupied  by  Rev.  Drs.  Patton  and  Parker,  who 
dwelt  on  the  appropriateness  and  power  of  female  action  in 
this  great  cause.  The  Washington ians,  Latham,  Madden, 
Snow,  and  others,  spoke  with  great  interest  to  the  audience, 
while  the  temperance  glee  club  and  the  firemen,  who  have 
united  with  the  cold  water  army,  drew  forth  by  their  appro- 
priate and  unimaled  .songs  the  loudest  applause. 

Never  have  we  mingled  in  an  assembly  where  were  more 


190  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

joyful  countenances.  A  number  of  our  respectable  citizens 
with  their  wives  and  daughters  came  to  see  the  happy  scene. 
We  only  wish  that  every  rum-seller  in  the  land  could  have 
witnessed  the  spectacle,  to  learn  that  his  destructive  business 
here  is  fast  on  the  wane. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

"  In  the  strength  of  your  might,  from  each  mountain  and  valley, 

Friends  of  Temperance,  arise  !  the  time  is  at  hand  : 
Around  its  broad  standard  we'll  rally,  we'll  rally, 

While  the  star-spangled  banner  floats  over  our  land. 
Then  let  the  proud  eagle  spread  his  wings  wide  asunder, 

And  break  from  the  trammels  which  strive  to  enchain ; 
If  we  rise  in  our  strength,  if  we  speak  but  in  thunder, 

The  Genius  of  Temperance  will  flourish  again." 

OF  his  journey  to  and  arrival  at  Washington,  Mr. 
Hawkins  thus  writes  in  his  journal :  — 

On  the  23d  of  February  left  New  York ;  stopped  in  Bur- 
lington to  lecture  in  the  evening ;  left  for  Philadelphia  same 
night.  Remained  in  Philadelphia  one  night ;  reached  Balti- 
more the  next  morning.  I  found  all  my  relatives  and  friends 
well,  and  glad  to  see  me.  Took  the  cars  next  day,  25th,  for 
Washington.  At  night  attended  a  large  and  enthusiastic 
meeting  in  the  Hall  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 

This  meeting  was  largely  attended  by  members  of 
Congress  and  many  individuals  who  had  taken  a 
prominent  part  in  the  late  extraordinary  movements. 
The  cordiality  with  which  Mr.  Hawkins  and  those  who 
labored  with  him  were  received,  was  exceedingly  grati- 
fying. The  meeting  was  addressed  by  the  Hon.  George 
N.  Briggs,  of  Massachusetts  ;  also  by  the  Hon.  Mr. 
Williams,  of  Connecticut,  who  offered  a  resolution  of 
thanks  for  the  late  signal  interposition  of  Divine 
Providence,  in  so  far  delivering  the  nation  from  the 
scourge  of  intemperance. 

(191) 


192  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

He  was  followed  by  Dr.  Thomas  Sewall,  who  by  his 
mammoth  engravings  of  the  interior  of  the  stomach 
exhibited  the  terrible  evils  inflicted  by  alcohol  upon  its 
inner  coatings.     The  Hon.  Mr.  Fillmore  spoke  of  the 
importance  of  these  illustrations  of  the  physical  effects 
of  intemperance.     The  Hon.  Mr.  Gillmore,  of  Virginia, 
commended  the  whole  subject  to  the  serious  attention 
of  the    young   men   of  the   nation,   especially    those 
occupying  posts  of  trust,  or  who  had  devoted  themselves 
to  the  service  of  their  country.     The  Hon.  Mr.  Burnell, 
from  Massachusetts,  dwelt  at  considerable  length  upon 
the  evils  inflicted  by  intemperance  upon  the  material 
resources  of  the  people,  and  upon  their  morals,  para- 
lyzing the  efforts  of  religion,  and  gradually  undermining 
her  institutibns.     The  Hon.  J.  R.  Giddings,  of  Ohio, 
denounced  intemperance  in  the  resolution  which  he 
offered,  on  the  ground  of  its  being  at  variance  with  the 
laws  of  our  physical  and  moral  being.     Hon.  T.  F. 
Marshall  thought  that  the  custom  of  pledging  each 
other  in  the  social  glass  at  fashionable  entertainments, 
has  no  foundation  in  the  natural  principles  of  good 
taste,  true  hospitality,  or  refined  manners.     Hon.  Mr. 
Morgan,   of  New   York,   dwelt   upon  the  subject  of 
female  influence.     Hon.  Mr.  Irving,  of  Pennsylvania, 
called  attention  by  resolution  to  the  extraordinary  work 
of  reform  which  is  now  blessing  the  country.     Mr. 
Hawkins  responded  to  the  resolution,  but  the  lateness 
of  the  hour  (eleven  o'clock),  did  not  admit  of  any  thing 
more  than  a  brief  account  of  what  he  had  been  per- 
mitted to   witness   in   various   parts   of  the   country 
through  which  he  had  travelled.  * 

*  For  a  more  extended  account,  see  Journal  of  American  Temperance 
Union,  New  York,  March,  1842. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  193 

So  great  was  the  interest  at  this  meeting,  that  even 
at  this  late  hour  none  of  the  audience  had  retired.  In 
conclusion,  Mr.  John  Tappan,  of  Boston,  moved  that 
the  whole  proceedings  and  speeches  be  printed  in 
pamphlet  form  and  circulated  through  the  country. 
During  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  the  Corres- 
ponding Secretary  of  the  American  Temperance  Union 
gave  a  highly  entertaining  summary  of  the  astonishing 
results  so  far  accomplished  in  the  country. 

Nothing  is  here  attempted  beyond  the  briefest  out- 
line ;  these  deliberations  exerted  an  extensive  influence 
in  the  country,  and  many  individuals  of  great  ability 
and  standing  were  led  to  give  the  subject  their  especial 
attention. 

There  was,  without  doubt,  some  intemperance  among 
the  members  of  Congress  at  this  period,  but  far  less 
than  the  statements  in  the  papers  led  the  country  to 
believe.  The  distinguished  reformations  which  had 
taken  place  exerted  a  good  influence  both  there  and 
abroad.  There  was  one  thing,  however,  in  connection 
with  intemperance  at  Washington,  which  occasioned 
great  dissatisfaction  among  the  people ;  viz.,  the  exist- 
ence of  drinking  saloons,  styled  refectories,  in  the  base- 
ment of  the  Capitol.  Mr.  Hawkins  exerted  his  influ- 
ence with  the  members  and  proper  authorities  to  procure 
the  removal  of  these  nuisances,  and  as  a  consequence 
they  were  for  several  years  in  a  good  degree  abated. 
It  was  not,  however,  until  the  winter  session  of 
1847-8  that  drinking  saloons  in  the  Capitol  were 
abolished  by  order  of  the  officers  of  both  branches  of 
Congress.  The  Hon.  George  M.  Dallas  was  at  that 
time  President  of  the  Senate,  and  the  Hon.  Robert  C 
Winthrop,  Speaker  of  the  House.  Mr.  Dallas  had 

17 


194  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

• 

ordered  their  removal  from  his  department  of  the  Cap- 
itol, thus  throwing  the  responsibility  of  their  continu- 
ance, under  the  other  wing,  upon  Mr.  Winthrop.  Many 
members  of  the  House  feeling  annoyed  at  this  state 
of  things,  Mr.  "Winthrop  gave  orders  to  the  Sergeant- 
at-Arms  to  notify  the  occupant  of  the  premises  to  va 
cate  them  immediately.  At  first  he  was  a  little  disposed 
to  resist  the  authorities,  but  finally  complied  with  their 
desires.  To  the  Hon.  Robert  C.  Winthrop,  therefore, 
belongs  the  credit  of  entirely  banishing,  for  the  first  time, 
inebriating  beverages  from  the  basement  of  the  na- 
tion's Capitol. 

Mr.  Hawkins  visited  Washington  subsequently,  and 
after  due  inquiries  learned  that  notwithstanding  the 
efforts  previously  made,  the  keeper  of  a  refectory  down 
in  those  gloomy  recesses  still  sold  the  forbidden  article. 
Although  suspected,  he  had  thus  far  escaped  detection; 
no  one  had  been  actually  seen  to  drink  in  his  saloon. 
Mr.  Hawkins  being  satisfied  as  to  his  guilt,  called  upon 
the  Sergeant-at- Arms  and  stated  his  convictions ;  that 
officer  informed  him  that  as  soon  as  he  could  bring 
certain  proofs  of  the  guilt  of  the  party  named,  he  should 
be  ordered  from  the  premises,  such  being  the  instruc- 
tions of  the  Speaker.  Mr.  Hawkins  went  immediately 
to  the  saloon  and  ordered  some  oysters ;  then  calling 
the  waiter,  he  inquired  in  a  low  tone  if  he  had  any 
other  refreshments.  Being  answered  in  the  affirmative, 
he  called  for  a  glass  of  brandy.  This  was  brought  to 
him,  and  as  soon  as  opportunity  allowed  he  conveyed 
the  contents  of  the  glass  into  a  vial,  which  he  carefully 
placed  in  his  pocket.  He  then  called  upon  the  officer 
above  named  and  stated  to  him  these  facts.  The  of- 
fender was  speedily  summoned  into  their  presence. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  195 

"  Do  you  not  keep  intoxicating  drinks,"  was  asked,  "  in 
your  establishment  ?  "  He  began  to  equivocate,  when 
he  was  immediately  checked  by  the  exhibition  of  the 
vial  of  brandy  which  Mr.  Hawkins  had  but  a  few  mo- 
ments before  procured  from  his  waiter.  It  is  needless  to 
add  that  the  offender  was  immediately  ordered  to  re- 
move the  offensive  articles.  This  was,  probably,  the  end 
of  tippling-shops  in  those  localities. 

Mr.  Hawkins  made  many  valuable  friends  among 
the  members  of  Congress,  who  in  after  years,  wherever 
they  met  him,  gave  him  their  hearty  encouragement  and 
sympathy.  He  was  regarded  by  them  as  an  honest 
lover  of  his  race ;  they  loved  him  for  his -frankness,  and 
confided  in  him. 

While  in  Washington  Mr.  Hawkins  lectured  four 
times  to  large  audiences,  and  with  uncommon  success  ; 
in  Apollo  Hall  on  Saturday,  February  26,  1842,  on 
Sunday  in  the  Methodist  Church,  in  the  Assembly 
Rooms  on  Monday,  and  in  the  Rev.  Dr.  Brown's  church 
on  Tuesday.  Remaining  a  few  days  in  Baltimore,  he 
proceeded  to  Philadelphia;  here  he  found  the  cause 
of  temperance  making  rapid  strides ;  the  interest  so 
great  that  meetings  were  kept  up  nightly.  He  reached 
New  Brunswick  on  the  16th  of  March,  where  he  deliv- 
ered four  lectures.  "  Much  has  been  done,"  he  remarks 
in  his  journal,  "  to  reclaim  the  drunkard ;  great  interest 
prevails." 

In  all  these  addresses,  while  Mr.  Hawkins  exhibited 
unabated  interest  in  the  inebriate,  he  did  not  fail  to 
call  the  public  attention  to  the  iniquity  of  the  liquor 
traffic,  and  the  great  laxity  of  the  license  laws.  He 
contended  that  unless  these  streams  of  death  could  be 


196  LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

abated,  the  efforts  of  temperance  men  would  in  a  good 
degree  prove  fruitless. 

The  reformation  of  so  many  thousands,  both  of  habit- 
ual and  moderate  drinkers,  had  largely  diminished  the 
retail  trade.     It  was  estimated  that  on  the  1st  of  April, 
1842,  the  demand  for  whisky  was  not  more  than  half 
what  it  was  in  the  same  month  of  the  year  previous. 
Its  sale  at  that  period  (April,  1841)  had  been  greatly 
reduced.     The  distilleries  were  now  running  not  more 
than  half  the  time,  and  there  was  a  large  stock  on  hand 
for  which  there  was  no  demand.      The  consumption 
of  grain  in  the  manufacture  of  the  article  in  previous 
years,  in  the  city  of  New  York  alone,  was  four  or  five 
thousand    bushels  daily:    now  it  was  less  than  two 
thousand.     "  The  distillers,"  says  the  Journal  of  Com- 
merce, in  March,  1842,  "seem  pleased  with  the  change, 
and  are  reducing  their  works  as  speedily  as  possible." 
It  was  confidently  believed  that  the  demand  for  the 
next  crop  of  grain  would  not  exceed  one-fourth  what 
it  was  at  the  highest  point,  —  that  the  falling  off  could 
not  be  less  than  a  million  of  bushels  for  the  year.    The 
largest  merchants  in  the  city  began  to  refuse  any  ad- 
vances on  whisky ;  a  cargo  of  rum,  failing  of  a  pur- 
chaser, was  put  up  at  auction,  and  after  paying  all 
expenses  there  was  not  fifty  dollars  remaining  for  the 
shipper.     Whisky  was  selling  at  eleven  cents  per  gal- 
lon in  Cincinnati,  which  was  not  half  the  price  of  the 
year  previous.      In   Maine  and  Massachusetts  sellers 
were  daily  abandoning  the  business.     A  young  lady 
in  Portland,  who  was  engaged  to  be  married  to  a  mer- 
chant who  kept  liquors  for  sale,  refused  her  consent  to 
their  union  until  he  had  emptied  his  casks ;  which,  of 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  197 

course,  he  did.  Many  of  the  most  notorious  rum-sellers 
in  the  land  gave  up  the  business  from  sincere  convic- 
tions of  duty.  In  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  four  shops  were 
closed  in  one  week.  In  Chillicothe  all  the  poison  from 
the  rum-shops  was  thrown  into  the  streets.  At  Jones- 
boro',  Tenn.,  an  old  dealer  gave  up  his  stock,  for  which 
the  citizens  paid  him,  and  a  bonfire  was  made  of  it  in 
the  public  square.  At  Conway,  N.  H.,  all  the  dealers 
save  one  renounced  the  traffic.  Five  distillers  in  Dan- 
ville and  two  in  Boston,  it  was  said  by  the  papers  of 
the  day,  put  out  their  fires.  In  Wilmington,  Del.,  in 
the  interior  towns  of  Virginia,  and  as  far  south  as 
Mobile,  a  considerable  number  of  dealers  closed  their 
shops. 

We  subjoin  a  note  containing  extracts  from  various 
papers  in  the  Union,  compiled  by  Rev.  Dr.  Marsh  for 
his  Journal,  which  will  exhibit  the  rapid  prevalence  of 
temperance  principles  at  this  exceedingly  interesting 
period  in  the  reformation.* 

*  In  one  block,  on  Wednesday  last,  we  counted  "  To  Let "  on  eight 
rum-shops,  some  of  them  large  ones,  hardly  a  stone's-throw  from  the  Five 
Points  too  !  — N.  Y.  Organ. 

Strolling  along  up  Division  Street  the  other  day,  we  saw  a  sign  in 
the  window  of  a  grocery  which  struck  us  as  being  somewhat  peculiar ; 
—  it  read  after  this  fashion:  "A  bar,  kegs,  decanters,  and  stock  of 
liquors  for  sale,  below  cost ! "  They  would  have  been  dear  at  that.  —  Or- 
gan. 

At  Worcester,  Mass.,  the  cause  of  temperance  advances  triumphantly ; 
great  numbers  have  signed  the  pledge ;  most  of  the  tavern  keepers  are 
among  the  number.  One  who  sometime  ago  sold  large  quantities  of  the 
fiery  liquid  by  the  glass,  and  therefore  would  not  sign  the  pledge,'  has 
had  his  business  so  reduced  that  he  has  rented  his  house  and  moved 
away. 

In  Brighton,  Muss.,  temperance  has  made  such  astonishing  progress, 
that  Porter's  Hotel  is  soon  to  be  vacated  by  him  who  has  dealt  out  the 
17* 


198  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Mr.    Hawkins  regarded  this   encouraging  state  of 

poison  to  thousands,  and  gloried  in  his  shame,  in  that  once  besotted,  but 
now  regenerated  town.  —  Letter. 

A  quantity  of  brandy  and  gin  of  the  best  quality  was  offered  at  auc- 
tion some  weeks  ago  in  Wilmington,  Del.  Great  pains  had  been  taken 
to  advertise  the  sale  by  handbills,  and  the  bell-man  was  sent  round  for  cus- 
tomers. At  the  heat  of  the  sale  the  people  gathered  in  such  numbers  that 
we  did  not  count  them.  The  way  the  rum-sellers  bid  for  the  liquor  was 
a  caution.  The  greatest  animation  prevailed,  and  the  thing  went  off 
finely.  Competition  was  at  its  extreme  point,  and  there  was  not  a  man 
in  the  crowd  that  did  not  appear  anxious  to  —  see  the  result.  The  first 
bid  was  twenty  cents  a  gallon,  by  some  strange  gentleman,  and  so  it  went 
on  —  on  —  on.  But  the  world  was  not  made  in  a  day,  nor  was  the  brandy 
and  gin  to  be  sold  in  a  minute.  The  auctioneer  cried  with  spirit ;  the 
spirits  of  the  company  rose  as  the  sale  went  on,  and  the  spirits  in  the 
casks  were  at  length  knocked  down  to  the  highest  bidder.  We  have  al- 
ready said  that  the  first  bid  was  twenty  cents  a  gallon.  The  reader  will 
please  bear  this  in  mind.  Well,  the  last  and  highest  bidder  of  course  got 
the  liquor  —  and  that  was  the  very  same  stranger  that  made  the  first  bid. 
Never  before  did  brandy  and  gin  bring  the  same  price  in  Wilmington. 
But  it  was  the  best  brandy  and  gin,  and  that  may  account  for  it.  Have 
patience,  reader,  and  you  shall  hear  the  end  of  it.  How  much  do  you 
suppose  it  sold  for  ?  The  first,  and  last,  and  only  bid  was  twenty  cents  a 
gallon !  —  Standard. 

We  believe  that  the  consumption  of  intoxicating  liquors  has  been  re- 
duced one  fourth  in  1841,  and  that  it  will  be  reduced  in  still  greater  pro- 
portion in  1842.  — Boston  paper. 

Some  weeks  ago  a  cargo  of  St.  Croix  rum  was  brought  to  this  city, 
but  returned  to  that  island  on  account  of  the  low  price  of  the  article  in  this 
market.  The  cargo  has  since  come  back  again,  of  course  paying  freight 
on  three  voyages.  — New  York  paper. 

In  Belchertown,  Mass.,  the  last  rum-tavern  has  abandoned  the 
trade. 

Mr.  Samuel  Palmer  has  turned  alcohol  out  of  his  bar  at  Oriskany 
Falls,  N.  Y.,  and  joyfully  unfurled  the  banner  of  temperance. 

Says  the  Utica  News,  —  "Within  one  week  we  have  seen  accounts 
of  sixty-three  rum-selling  taverns  and  hotels  turned  into  temperance 
houses,  and  in  many  instances  the  wines  and  liquors  were  burned  in  the 
streets." 

The  Pittsburg  Gazette  says  "  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  wliile  there  were 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  199 

things,  with  evident  satisfaction.    He  was  encouraged  in 

in  Washington  and  Alleghany  counties,  in  Pennsylvania,  in  the  year 
1815,  some  fifteen  hundred  stills  at  work,  there  are  at  this  time  not  more 
than  fifteen  or  twenty  still-houses  at  work  in  both  counties." 

Several  merchants  in  Annapolis  have  turned  their  liquor  into  the  street, 
and  one  of  the  keepers  of  the  City  Hotel  has  signed  the  Washington 
pledge. 

Mr.  S.  Norton,  of  New  Marlboro',  has  abandoned  the  sale  of  liquor. 
This  is  the  first  instance  in  Berkshire  county,  and  was  celebrated  by  a 
magnificent  supper. 

In  Lynn,  Mass.,  there  were,  six  months  ago,  eighteen  spirit  shops  send- 
ing forth  a  pestilential  influence  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
town.  There  are  only  three  remaining. 

At  Elyria,  O.,  Gen.  Griffith  has  converted  his  mansion-house  into  a 
temperance-house,  and  on  the  22d  of  February,  at  a  teetotal  dinner,  was 
present  the  most  extensive  distiller  and  vender  in  the  county,  he  and  his 
family  having  signed  the  pledge. 

At  Norwalk,  O.,  Col.  James,  of  the  Mansion,  has  removed  every  thing 
in  the  shape  of  alcohol  from  his  bar. 

At  Medina,  Mr.  S.  H.  Bradley,  of  the  Eastern  Hotel,  and  Mr.  Chides- 
ter  and  Mr.  Miner,  have  all  broken  up  their  bars. 

Mr.  Marshall,  the  keeper  of  a  tavern  at  Marcus  Hook,  Pa.,  in  which 
liquor  has  been  sold  for  the  last  seventy-five  years,  has  sawed  down  his 
old  sign,  and  removed  ardent  spirits  from  his  premises. 

The  Franklin  House  at  Owego,  and  the  Hotel  at  Ovid,  have  recently 
ousted  alcohol,  and  raised  the  cold-water  colors. 

One  of  the  principal  grocers  in  Wilmington  lately  remarked  that  he 
thought  if  a  paper  were  taken  round  among  the  grocers,  all  but  one  of 
them  would  sign  to  give  up  the  sale  of  liquor. 

The  two  hotels  in  North  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  have  raised  the  teetotal 
sign- 
In  Portland,  Me.,  there  were  a  year  ago  one  hundred  and  thirty  rum- 
sellers.  Of  these,  twenty-four  have  discontinued  the  business. 

A  clerk  of  one  of  the  largest  rum-selling  establishments  in  Portland, 
recently  said  that  their  sales  were  not  sufficient  to  make  it  an  object  to 
keep  liquors; — and  a  large  dealer  said  recently,  that  this  reform  was  only 
a  little  flurry,  which  would  soon  be  over,  otherwise  he  would  abandon  the 
business,  as  no  longer  worth  pursuing  —  and  that  his  profits  on  liquors 
were  diminished  this  year  to  the  amount  of  $3,000. 

A  gentleman  in  Maine  says,  those  who  formerly  transported  hogs- 
heads of  rum  by  his  house  into  the  country,  are  now  reduced  to  barrels, 


200  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

his  own  efforts,  and  he  spread  abroad,  wherever  he  lec- 
tured, the  news  of  these  daily  conquests  over  the 
demon  of  the  still. 

On  reaching  New  York,  he  found  that  his  friend  Mr. 
Asa  Bigelow  had  made  appointments  for  him  in  the 
following  places :  Eye,  Southport,  Fairfield,  and  Dan- 
bury,,  Ct.  There  were  a  multitude  of  towns  which  he 
had  not  yet  visited  in  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut, 
where  the  people  were  clamorous  for  his  presence  and 
aid.  The  Massachusetts  Temperance  Union  had  printed 
and  circulated  seventy-five  thousand  copies  of  a  tract 
containing  his  first  speech  in  Faneuil  Hall,  and  another 
edition  was  demanded.  All  these  things  tended  to 
keep  alive  public  interest,  and  added  greatly  to  his 
means  of  usefulness  wherever  he  went.  We  subjoin 
the  following  correspondence  as  evidence  of  the  feel- 
ings entertained  towards  Mr.  Hawkins  by  the  people 
of  Danbury,  Ct. :  — 

NEW  YORK,  March  14,  1842. 

MR.  JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir,  —  I  have  come  to 
this  city  —  hearing  that  you  were  to  be  here  on  Saturday  last — 
for  the  express  purpose  of  urging  you  to  come  to  the  town  of 

and  those  who  formerly  transported  rum  by  the  barrel  now  do  it  by  the 
keg. 

Mr.  Sergent,  of  the  Mansion  House,  Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  has  hoisted 
the  temperance  flag. 

In  the  western  district  of  the  State  of  Maine,  fourteen  grog-shops  have 
been  opened  during  the  year,  and  more  than  fifty-one  have  been  closed, 
or  their  bars  taken  down.  All  the  returns  agree  in  saying  that  the  sales 
of  liquor  have  greatly  diminished  during  the  year.  In  some  towns 
the  diminution  is  set  down  at  one-half— in  others  at  three-quarters,  and 
in  others  at  nine-tenths,  for  in  some  of  the  towns  in  the  district,  all  the 
traders  and  tavern  keepers  have  ceased  to  sell  intoxicating  drinks.  —  Rep. 
of  Com. 

In  Brunswick,  Me.,  both  of  the  public  houses  have  closed  their  bars. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  201 

Danbury,  Ct.,  to  labor  in  the  temperance  cause.  And  did  I 
not  know  that  the  reformation  of  the  poor,  drunken,  and  des- 
pised hatter  lay  nearest  your  heart,  I  should  at  once  despair  of 
prevailing  upon  you  to  leave  unanswered  the  numerous  calls 
from  large  places  and  cities,  and  come  to  us.  We  have  a  soci- 
ety now  formed  on  the  right  principles.  A  reformed  hatter 
for  President,  a  reformed  laborer  for  Vice  President,  a  reformed 
baker  for  Secretary,  and  a  reformed  shoemaker  for  Correspond- 
ing Secretary.  Many  of  our  hatters,  too,  have  reformed,  but 
there  are  a  great  many  that  hold  out  yet.  And  now  is  the 
time,  sir.  Many  of  them  know  you,  and  the  cry  is,  "  Give  us 
John  Hawkins."  Could  you  have  heard  the  "ayes"  when 
the  question  was  asked  to  an  overflowing  audience,  "  Shall  we 
send  for  him  ?  "  methinks  you  would  not  hesitate  long. 

Sir,  I  would  not  be  too  bold,  but  if  I  should  speak  the  minds 
of  my  townsmen,  I  should  say,  "  We  must  have  you ! "  and 
my  commission  was,  "  not  to  come  back  without  you."  But  as 
you  are  not  here,  I  cannot  take  you  with  me.  So  confident 
were  the  people  that  you  were  in  the  city  and  could  be  pre- 
vailed on  to  come,  that  they  have  appointed  this,  Monday  even- 
ing, for  a  meeting,  and  procured  the  largest  church  in  the  town, 
with  the  expectation  that  you  will  be  among  them  to-night. 
Could  I  see  you,  I  could  give  you  some  interesting  facts  which 
time  will  not  allow  to  do  on  paper.  And  now,  sir,  what  further 
shall  I  say  to  you  ?  Do  you  not  believe  that  we  want  you  ? 
Do  you  not  believe  that  there  is  a  field  in  which  you  can  labor 
for  a  great  amount  of  good  ?  There  are  over  twenty  hat  shops 
in  the  town,  and  among  all  these  but  a  very  few  of  the  jour- 
neymen are  temperate  men.  Will  you  come  ? 

The  most  direct  route  is  by  the  steamboat  Nimrod,  or  Fair- 
field,  to  Bridgeport,  thence  by  railroad  to  Land's  End,  thence 
by  stage  to  Danbury ;  or,  you  can  stop  at  Norwalk  and  take 
the  stage  direct  to  Danbury.  Through  the  kindness  of  Mr. 
I'.i'jelow,  I  have  been  put  on  this  track  for  reaching  you, 
otherwise,  I  believe  I  must  have  gone  home  as  empty  as  I 


202  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Now  I  feel  as  if  I  could  go  with  a  much  better  grace.  And 
now,  sir,  in  conclusion,  let  me  say,  should  you  conclude  to  come 
among  us,  only  write  me  a  line  through  the  post  office,  stating 
the  day  on  which  you  will  be  there.  You  can  start  in  the 
morning  and  reach  there  about  4  P.M.  the  same  day.  I  give 
you  my  word  you  shall  be  "  shopped "  to  as  full  an  audience 
as  any  heart  could  desire. 

With  much  respect  I  am,  sir, 

Your  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

E.  ARTHUR  NICHOLS. 

On  reaching  Southport,  March  the  22d,  he  was  met 
by  a  gentleman  from  Danbury,  who  handed  him  tho 
following  letter :  — 

DANBURY,  March  22,  1842. 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir,  —  Permit  me  to  intro- 
duce to  your  acquaintance,  the  bearer,  Mr.  James  P.  Saunders, 
who  comes  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  you  to  this  place,  direct. 
Mr.  Saunders  is  the  person  with  whom  you  had  some  corres- 
pondence last  fall.  I  should  have  come  myself,  but  my  busi- 
ness and  public  duties  prevented  me.  The  people  here  are  all 
awake  for  ten  miles  round,  and  anxious  to  see  and  hear  you. 
You  will  want  to  start  pretty  early  in  the  morning  in  order  to 
reach  here  by  noon.  Our  arrangements  are  to  have  you  ad- 
dress the  children  in  the  afternoon  of  to-morrow,  when  none 
but  children  will  be  admitted ;  in  the  evening,  the  men  will  oc- 
cupy the  house  and  children  excluded.  On  Thursday  there  is 
a  great  desire  to  have  a  mass  meeting ;  but  in  all  these  ar- 
rangements your  opinion  and  comfort  will  be  consulted.  Mr. 
Saunders  will  give  a  detail  of  our  late  proceedings,  etc.,  etc. 
Very  respectfully,  your  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

ED.  ARTHUR  NICHOLS. 

This  communication  was  preceded  by  a  petition 
signed  by  thirty  hatters,  urging  his  coming. 


LIFE  OF   JOHN   H.  W.   HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins  says  in  his  journal:  — 

March  23.  —  Was  conveyed  by  private  carriage  to  Danbury, 
Ct.  Delivered  three  lectures  in  this  place  ;  much  interest  felt 
on  the  subject,  especially  among  the  hatters.  I  delivered  one 
lecture  in  an  adjoining  town,  Bethel;  much  has  been  done 
here  for  the  cause. 

What  his  success  was  in  this  place  (Danbury),  may 
be  learned  from  the  following  letter,  written  some 
weeks  after  his  visit  to  that  place. 

DANBURY,  April,  29,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  On  the  other  side  you  will  find  a  list  of 
Washingtonian  hatters,  residents  of  this  town.  I  think  you 
will  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  "  Old  Hat  Shop  "  is  nearly 
redeemed. 

We  are  continually  adding  to  our  numbers  :  some  "  old 
bruisers  "  come  up  every  Monday  evening,  and  there  is  hardly 
time  to  give  all  a  chance  to  speak.  If  things  continue  in  this 
manner,  we  shall  be  obliged  to  hold  two  meetings  in  a  week. 
We  are  now  about  procuring  a  banner,  the  expense  of  which 
will  be  in  the  neighborhood  of  $50.  The  cause  is  going  for- 
ward all  around  us  ;  —  new  societies  are  forming,  and  we  send 
out  lecturers  to  them  from  among  our  own  men. 

The  times  are  very  much  against  us,  as  most  of  our  men 
are  out  of  employment,  and  can  get  nothing  to  do.  But  they 
hold  on  finely  to  the  Car  of  Temperance.  It  would  give  us  t 
great  deal  of  pleasure  to  see  and  hear  you  once  more,  and  we 
are  indulging  the  hope,  that  before  the  summer  is  gone  yo 
will  be  among  us.  We  are  making  great  preparations  to  have 
a  great  celebration  on  the  fourth  of  July.  The  whole  number 
of  Washingtonians  in  the  town  is  over  thirteen  hundred. 

Don't  forget  us  when  you  go  to  Albany  this  summer ;   just 


204  LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

let  me  know  when  you  are  coming  and  we  will  have   some 
stock  for  you  to  work  upon. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

ED.  ARTHUR  NICHOLS. 

Then  follow  the  names  of  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
seven  hatters,  most  of  them  reformed  within  one  year. 

DANBUKT,  12  May,  1842. 

ME.  JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir, —  The  Washington 
Temperance  Benevolent  Society  of  this  town  have  determined 
to  celebrate  the  approaching  anniversary  of  our  nation's  inde- 
pendence in  an  appropriate  manner.  Invitations  have  already 
been  extended  to  every  town  in  our  county,  to  unite  with  us 
upon  that  occasion ;  and  we  shall  doubtless  have  an  assemblage 
of  from  four  to  six  thousand  persons  upon  that  day.  Should 
the  weather  prove  unfavorable,  we  shall  defer  the  celebration 
until  the  5th,  as  our  ceremonies  must  necessarily  be  in  the 
open  air.  We  know  of  no  man  who  would  be  so  warmly  wel- 
comed to  address  us  as  yourself;  as  we  consider  that  you  may 
be  emphatically  called  the  pioneer  in  our  glorious  cause. 
Will  you  not,  therefore,  favor  us  with  an  address  up  on  that  joy- 
ful occasion  ?  Fairfield  County  has  taken  the  lead  in  temper- 
ance in  this  State.  You  have  already  assisted  us  in  turning 
our  lead  to  the  other  side,  and  we  must  yet  cry  "  give,  give." 
Don't  refuse  us.  You  will  find  thousands  of  warm  and  glad 
hearts  to  hear  you. 

Yours  very  respectfully, 

NELSON  L.  WHITE,          1 

ED.  ARTHUR  NICHOLS,     [Committeeof 

AMOS  BISHOP,  f  Arrangements. 

JAMES  P.  SAUNDERS, 

WM.  A.  CROCKER. 

At  the  close  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  first  visit  to  Danbury, 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  205 

on  the  25th  of  March,  he  returned  to  New  York,  and 
on  the  next  day  left  in  steamboat  Worcester  for  Bos- 
ton, by  way  of  Norwich  and  Worcester.  How  he  oc- 
cupied himself  on  board  will  be  seen  from  the  follow- 
ing communication  which  we  take  from  the  Mercantile 
Journal  The  writer,  after  speaking  of  the  greater  quiet 
and  comfort  on  "temperance  steamboats,"  says:  — 
/ 

I  have  been  led  to  this  remark  after  another  passage  in  the 
steamer  Worcester  of  the  Norwich  line,  under  the  command 
of  Capt.  Coit.  It  is  also  to  be  remembered  that  in  order  to 
secure  that  quiet  and  sense  of  safety  so  much  desired  on  board 
a  steamer,  a  sacrifice  has  been  made  by  the  proprietors  of  this 
boat.  Rum,  wine,  and  all  other  intoxicating  drinks  have  been 
banished  from  the  bar  and  the  boat.  We  had  a  fine  run  on 
Saturday  last,  pleasant  weather,  a  good  table  and  attention, 
and  a  company  of  passengers  who,  if  not  all  teetotalers,  were 
at  least  disposed  to  hear  reasons  for  becoming  so. 

Mr.  Hawkins,  the  great  apostle  of  Washingtonianism,  being 
on  board,  it  was  unanimously  voted  at  the  table  to  hold  a  tem- 
perance meeting  in  the  forward  cabin  after  supper,  and  request 
an  address  from  him.  The  meeting  was  called  to  order  at  seven 
o'clock,  when  John  Owen,  of  Cambridge,  was  appointed  Chair- 
man, and  H.  B.  Claflin,  of  Worcester,  Secretary.  The  com- 
pany was  then  addressed  by  several  gentlemen.  Mr.  Hawkins 
made  an  eloquent  appeal  to  the  moderate  drinkers,  showing 
the  deceptive  influence  of  all  fermented  liquors  upon  the  minds 
and  feelings  of  those  who  use  them  in  any  quantity.  The- mod- 
erate drinker  might  not  acknowledge  this  influence,  and  would 
not  be  likely  to,  till  reformation  should  open  his  eyes.  Then 
be  would  see  and  confess  it  all,  with  the  two  hundred  thousand 
inebriates  in  this  country,  reformed  within  the  past  year,  who, 
with  united  voice,  have  borne  testimony  to  the  insidious  nature 
of  all  intoxicating  liquors.  Mr.  Hawkins  introduced  the  anec- 
dote of  Judge  M.'s  definition  of  drunkenness,  in  his  usual  happy 
18 


206  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

manner  of  telling  a  story.  A  clergyman  had  been  accused 
of  intemperance  by  an  individual  whom  he  wished  to  have 
arraigned  for  a  libel  on  his  reputation.  He  applied  for  this 
purpose  to  Judge  M.,  then  an  eminent  lawyer  in  Baltimore. 
Having  heard  the  clergyman's  complaint,  and  after  a  severe 
scrutiny  of  the  person  of  the  complainant,  Mr.  M.,  not  inexperi- 
enced himself  in  the  effects  of  drink,  questioned  his  client  in  the 
following  manner :  "  Sir,  in  order  to  do  my  duty  to  you  more 
faithfully,  I  wish  to  inquire,  first  of  all,  are  you  guilty  of  tlie 
charge  ?  Do  you  ever  get  drunk  ?  "  Astonished  at  the  ques- 
tion, the  clergyman  was  about  to  say  "  never,"  but  having  a 
good  degree  of  conscientiousness,  he  hesitated,  and  then  he  re- 
plied, "  What  do  you  mean  by  drunkenness  ?  "  "  Why,  sir,  I 
mean  by  drunkenness  that  condition  of  the  human  faculties  in 
which,  by  the  use  of  fermented  liquors,  a  man  is  enabled  or  in- 
duced to  do  certain  acts  which  he  could  not  do,  or  would  not  do, 
without  such  use.  For  instance,  sir,  and  I  beg  you  not  to  deem 
me  personal  or  irreverent,  a  man  may  sometimes  preach  a  more 
eloquent  discourse,  and  utter  a  more  fervent  prayer,  excited  by 
drink,  than  he  could  do  in  the  previous  languid  state  of  his 
feelings.  He  may  not  think  so,  but  I  call  him  drunk.  This  is 
my  definition  of  drunkenness."  The  clergyman  replied,  "  Mr. 
M.,  I  withdraw  my  complaint ! " 

A  few  days  previous  to  Mr.  Hawkins'  return  to 
New  York,  a  very  important  meeting  of  reformed 
drunkards  was  held  in  Concert  Hall,  Broadway.  Dr. 
Kirby  took  the  chair,  and  after  making  a  few  remarks 
introduced  several  reformed  drunkards,  each  of  whom, 
by  arrangement,  was  to  speak  not  over  five  min- 
utes. The  first  one  who  came  upon  the  stand  was 
Mr.  Latham,  the  individual  who  at  the  first  meeting 
addressed  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  in  Green  Street,  New  York 
cried  out  from  the  gallery  to  know  "  if  there  was  any 
hope  for  him." 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  207 

Mr.  Latham  said  he  was  young  to  address  an  audience  like 
that,  being  but  one  year  old  that  day.  One  year  ago  he  was  a 
miserable  drunkard.  He  did  not  tell  of  that  to  glory  in  it. 
No.  He  was  ashamed  of  it,  and  sorry  for  it.  But  as  he  had 
been  one,  he  was  willing  to  confess  it,  and  felt  it  his  duty  to  do 
so.  I  went  to  the  church  in  Green  Street  the  day  John 
Hawkins  came  here.  I  had  been  drunk  twice  that  day.  I 
drank  to  strengthen  my  resolution  to  go  into  the  church.  I 
heard  what  he  said  of  himself,  and  I  asked  myself  if  he  could 
be  saved  why  might  not  I  be  ;  and  I  felt  so  much  that  I  spoke 
my  feelings  aloud  ;  —  they  brought  me  down  and  I  signed  the 
pledge,  one  year  ago  to-day.  And  oh,  what  a  different  man  I 
have  been  ever  since !  J  have  the  same  body,  bones,  and 
sinews,  but  oh,  how  changed  in  every  respect !  I  look  upon 
myself  as  a  wonder.  The  doctors  said  that  we  could  not  be 
reformed  ;  we  should  all  die  if  we  left  off  drinking.  But  the 
Almighty,  in  his  goodness,  was  determined  to  break  this 
illusion.  •  The  doctors  knew  nothing  about  it,  and  to  prove 
they  did  not,  I  will  mention  that  it  was  six  months  from  its 
commencement  before  a  single  member  of  our  society  died, 
though  it  got  to  be  very  numerous.  If  any  man  will  sign  our 
pledge  honestly,  and  stick  to  it  a  little  while,  he  will  meet  with 
no  difficulty.  He  will  meet  with  the  greatest  trials  and 
temptations,  but  he  must  be  firm.  I  lay  on  my  bed  three  days, 
my  wife  sitting  by  and  doing  a  little  something,  but  no  money 
and  no  food  in  the  house.  At  length  I  took  a  basket  and  went 
out.  I  worked  at  beer-pumps.  I  met  all  my  acquaintance, 
and  all  said,  drink  a  little  or  you  will  die.  But  the  words  of 
John  Hawkins  were  right  before  me  —  "  LIVE  OR  DIE,  NEVER 
TOUCH  ANOTHER  DROP;"  and  that  saved  me,  and  has  saved 
thousands  of  others,  and  has  saved  a  great  many  temperate 
men,  moderate  drinkers,  from  becoming  drunkards. 

The  experience  of  five  others  was  given,  all  going  to 
«how  the  influence  of  the  reform  in  snatching  degraded 


208  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

men  from  the  very  edge  of  the  yawning  gulf,  and 
restoring  them  to  sobriety  and  happiness. 

On  reaching  Boston  Mr.  Hawkins  found  the  cause 
of  temperance  in  a  most  hopeful  condition.  A  host  of 
temperance  delegates,  selected  from  the  Washington 
Temperance  Society,  had  been  sent  out  into  all  parts 
of  the  New  England  States,  and  through  their  efforts 
societies  had  been  formed  and  hundreds  of  unfortunate 
men  snatched  from  the  misery  of  a  debasing  appetite, 
restored  to  their  families  and  homes.  Says  the  Mercan- 
tile Journal :  — 

By  letters  received  from  various  parts  of  Massachusetts, 
New  Hampshire,  and  Vermont,  the  most  cheering  accounts  are 
given  from  places  that  our  delegates  have  visited.  The  Wash- 
ingtonian  reform  is  spreading  rapidly  in  all  sections.  The 
amount  of  good  done  by  our  delegates  abroad  is  beyond  calcu- 
lation. One  short  year  more  and  the  Northern  States  will  be 
as  free  from  intemperance  as  any  spot  on  the  whole  earth. 

Nor  was  this  abatement  in  the  use  of  intoxicating 
beverages  confined  to  any  one  class  in  the  community ; 
it  reached  every  grade  of  society  ;  all  seemed  willing  to 
admit  the  fact  of  the  baneful  influence  of  intemperance, 
and  manifested  a  disposition  to  moderate,  if  not  aban- 
don, the  use  of  intoxicating  drinks.  They  began  to  be 
much  less  frequently  provided  at  fashionable  entertain- 
ments ;  moderate  drinkers  were  becoming  alarmed ;  the 
young  were  eagerly  embracing  the  principles  of  total  ab- 
stinence. In  a  letter  from  Washington,  dated  5th  Feb- 
ruary, 1843,  to  Edward  C.  Delavan,  Esq.,  which  we 
extract  from  the  Mercantile  Journal,  the  statement  was 
made,  that  "  at  the  great  and  splendid  levee  given  on  the 
occasion  of  his  daughter's  marriage,  the  President  of 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  209 

the  United  States  of  America  had  not  a  drop  of  wine 
or  other  alcoholic  drinks  furnished.  Nothing  but  cold 
water  was  to  be  had,  and  on  a  wedding  occasion  too. 
What  a  noble  step!  one  which  will  draw  to  him 
thousands  of  hearts,  warm  and  fresh,  and  will  tell  on 
the  future  destinies  of  the  nation." 

"  Fashionable  drinking "  was  becoming  unfashion- 
able, and  the  traffic  in  ardent  spirits  was  on  the  decline. 
The  most  influential  papers  in  the  country  were  con- 
tributing their  powerful  aid  in  the  advocacy  of  total 
abstinence.  We  have  already  spoken  of  the  noble 
stand  taken  by  the  Boston  Mercantile  Journal ;  now  the 
National  Intelligencer,  the  North  American,  the  Journal 
of  Commerce,  the  New-York  Express,  the  New-York 
Tribune,  the  New-  York  Times  and  Star,  and  a  host  of 
other  papers,  were  sending  forth  columns  filled  with 
noble  sentiments  in  praise  of  the  reformation.  We 
subjoin  a  few  extracts.* 

*  (FROM  THE  NEW-YORK  TIMES  AND  STAB.) 

This  practice,  or  rather  habit  of  hard  drinking  and  draining  the  wine 
cup,  and  keeping  up  bacchanalian  revels,  has  run  through  the  many 
ages  of  English  kings,  down  to  the  Reformation,  and  then  it  presented  a 
more  elegant  and  rational  adoption  of  the  same  habits,  with  more  refine- 
ment, but  with  less  consumption  of  strong  liquors.  There  was  not  that 
rude  and  boisterous  hospitality,  which,  chaining  a  man  to  the  table,  and 
compelling  him  to  drain  goblet  after  goblet,  kept  him  there  until  brutal 
intoxication  followed,  and  himself  and  all  the  lords  and  knights  and  no- 
bility of  the  land,  sprawled  on  the  floor  in  utter  insensibility.  Brand}' 
yielded  to  light  wine,  and  distilled  waters  to  punch,  a  favorite  beverage 
from  the  time  of  Elizabeth  to  George  the  Third,  when  heavy  Port  and 
Old  Maderia  chased  away  the  immense  china  bowl  and  silver  dipper, 
which  were  the  delight  of  all  the  clubs  and  fashionable  houses.  We,  of 
course,  in  this  country,  followed  the  fashion  of  our  ancestors  ;  wo  spoke 
.mi;  language  and  adopted  the  same  habits  as  our  forefathers  ;  and 
up  !<;  1815,  it  i.s  doubtful  whether  men  of  easy  fortune  were  not  as  loud 
delights  oC  the  table,  as  they  were  at  any  period  of  our  history. 
18* 


210  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Much  indeed  had  been  done,  but  vastly  more  was 

At  that  time  champagne  sparingly  appeared,  and  was  considered  so  choice 
and  recherche,  that  a  bottle  or  two  passed  around  the  centre  table  at  an 
evening  party  of  ladies,  was  deemed  a  rich  and  rare  treat.  But  every 
thing  is  doomed  to  its  changes,  and  all  other  kinds  of  wines  were  almost 
banished  by  the  importations  of  whole  cargoes  of  champagne,  until  a 
French  cultivator  wished  to  know  of  his  correspondent  here,  "  whether 
we  bathed  in  champagne,"  such  waa  the  immense  quantity  of  that  article 
exported  to  this  country.  If  we  ask  the  importers,  we  shall  find  that  the 
quantity  of  all  kinds  of  wines  introduced  into  this  country,  has  greatly  di- 
minished. It  is  not  true,  therefore,  as  has  been  said,  that  there  is  more 
hard  drinking,  intoxication,  lewdness,  and  profanity  among  the  opulent 
than  are  found  in  the  grog-shops ;  there  never  was  at  any  time  ground  to 
institute  the  comparison.  At  all  events,  sitting  long  at  table  after  dinner, 
drinking  bottle  after  bottle  of  wine,  is  almost  entirely  exploded  among 
respectable  people.  In  former  times  the  sideboard  was  thrown  open,  and 
the  casual  visitor  invited  to  drink ;  that  practice  is  almost  entirely  ex- 
ploded. Down  East,  the  great  school  of  morality,  the  distilleries  are  a 
dead  loss  on  the  hands  of  their  owners,  and  grog-shops  are  everywhere 
closing ;  and  it  is  considered  vulgar  among  genteel  people  to  indulge  in 
drinking  liquors,  almost  of  every  kind.  Our  tavern  and  hotel  keepers, 
and  family  grocers,  sell  less  liquor  than  they  formerly  did ;  the  Irish  are 
gradually  selling  out  their  grog-shops  to  the  Germans,  who  will  soon  dis- 
cover that  they  are  following  a  losing  business.  In  our  foreign  caffs,  so 
much  frequented,  there  are  few  if  any  hard  drinkers.  A  cup  of  coffee  or 
chocolate,  a  glass  of  hot  milk  and  sugar,  a  lemonade,  or  some  such  bev- 
erages, are  the  prevailing  drinks.  In  short,  it  should  be  proudly  con- 
ceded, that  everywhere  throughout  our  country,  and  in  all  classes,  there 
are  evident  signs  of  great  improvement  in  the  temperance  cause.  There 
are  some  benighted  regions  of  the  republic  where  the  cause  has  not  as 
yet  made  much  progress  ;  but  "  Eome  was  not  built  in  a  day ;"  and  if  the 
press  of  our  country  will  unite  to  .advocate  this  great  moral  reform,  we 
shall  be  in  time  a  sober  people,  and,  consequently,  with  all  our  great  re- 
sources, a  decidedly  happy  people. 

(FROM  THE  MERCANTILE  JOUENAL.) 

The  temperance  reformation  is  making  a  great  stir  in  the  Bermudas, 
and  the  movement  is  strongly  countenanced  and  aided  by  the  Governor, 
Keid. 

Among  the  stupendous  reforms  of  the  present  day,  nothing  excites 
more  grateful  astonishment  than  the  temperance  reformation.  It  is  as 


LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  211 

yet  to  be  accomplished.  Mr.  Hawkins  remained  a  few 
days  in  Boston  with  his  family,  to  make  arrangements 
for  another  temperance  tour.  In  the  mean  time  he 
visited  all  parts  of  the  city  to  ascertain  what  had  been 
the  influence  of  the  reformations  on  the  traffic,  and 
the  appearance  of  those  sections  where  the  intemperate 
"  most  do  congregate."  He  was,  without  doubt,  often 
gratified  at  the  evident  improvement,  but  enough  was 
still  visible  to  spur  him  on  to  redoubled  zeal.  Says  the 
Mercantile  Journal  of  Dec.  6, 1841 :  — 

John  Hawkins  says  it  would  be  a  first-rate  business  for  some 
temperance  man  to  stand  at  a  certain  corner  near  the  Hay- 
scales,  of  a  Sunday  morning,  and  distribute  a  certain  tract 
called  the  "  Fool's  Pence."  He  furthermore  says,  that  any 

vast  as  it  is  deep,  and  thorough  as  it  is  extensive.  It  does  not  merely 
pervade  certain  local  sections,  or  the  visible  surface  of  society.  It  em- 
braces the  entire  Union,  and  its  healing  influence  extends  from  the  refined 
classes  down  to  the  most  besotted  bodies  of  men.  Persons  from  the  East 
and  the  "West,  from  the  North  and  the  South,  from  populous  cities  and 
obscure  villages,  alike  concur  in  speaking  of  it  as  exceeding  any  thing  in 
the  annals  of  moral  refonnation.  We  find  persons  of  every  grade,  who 
have  been  habitual  drinkers,  almost  voluntarily  abandoning  their  cups, 
and  renouncing  their  accustomed  haunts  of  dissipation.  Crowds  of 
men,  acted  upon  by  common  sympathy,  or  by  some  other  inexplicable 
cause,  are  abandoning  habits  of  intoxication,  and  joining  in  reforming 
those  whose  appetites  hitherto  they  have  helped  to  feed  and  inflame.  Men 
who  have  been  conspicuous  for  their  habits  of  intemperance  and  lawless 
disregard  of  the  healthful  laws  of  morality,  suddenly  are  changed  and 
become  exemplary  and  sober  men.  Nothing  could  induce  a  return  to  their 
former  habits  ;  it  would  be  difficult  to  tempt  these  men  again  to  pollute 
their  lips  with  the  "  poison."  Those  who  once  needed  the  aid  of  friends 
to  stop  excess,  now  in  turn  are  exhorting  others  to  reform.  The  reformed 
everywhere  have  become  successful  and  judicious  reformers.  God  be 
praised,  that  this  vast  fountain  from  whence  vice  springs  in  such  innumer- 
able shapes,  has  already  met  with  so  blessed  an  amount  of  purification 
May  it  continue  to  be  cleansed,  and  happy  will  that  day  be  wlicu  it  no 
longer  shall  send  forth  turbid  and  bitter  waters.  —  Oct.  4,  1841. 


212  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

man  who  spends  his  money  in  such  places  for  rum,  while  his 
family  is  suffering  at  home  for  food  and  fuel,  may  well  exclaim 
in  the  language  of  John  Randolph,  "  Remorse !  remorse  !  KE- 
MORSE  ! " 

On  the  1st  of  April,  1842,  so  rapidly  had  the  cause 
advanced  among  all  classes  of  men,  from  the  humblest 
day  laborer  to  the  statesman  in  the  halls  of  Congress, 
as  to  be  made  a  subject  of  especial  comment  by  most 
of  the  journals  favorable  to  temperance  in  the  land. 
The  Journal  of  the  American  Temperance  Union,  in 
adverting  to  this  encouraging  state  of  things,  used  the 
following  language :  — 

"We  believe  no  month  has  exhibited  more  engagedness  and 
zeal,  or  has  been  attended  with  more  signal  triumphs  in  our  city 
than"  the  one  just  brought  to  a  close.  Our  happy  celebration 
of  the  birthday  of  Washington  seemed  to  inspire  every  true 
friend  of  the  cause  with  a  new  determination  to  carry  forward 
the  work ;  while  the  intelligence  pouring  in  from  every  part 
of  the  United  States  through  the  public  press,  and  imparted  by 
the  many  who  are  at  this  season  visiting  our  city,  has  satisfied 
us  that  we  are  moving  on  amid  a  national  enthusiasm,  which 
is  to  exterminate  our  country's  worst  enemy.  It  is  impossible 
for  us  to  give  the  names  of  all  the  societies  now  in  the  field ; 
their  places  of  meeting ;  names  of  speakers ;  the  cheering,  the 
glorious  results. 

Speaking  of  the  operations  in  the  city  of  New  York 
alone,  it  says :  — 

We  suppose  there  are  not  less  than  fifty  meetings  held 
weekly,  and  most  of  them  are  perfect  jams.  Our  accessions 
are  numerous,  and  often  of  the  most  hopeless  characters.  The 
Washington  societies  have  opened  their  battery  in  Broadway, 
and  already  some  of  the  higher  classes,  as  they  are  called,  men 


LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.  W.   HAWKINS.  213 

of  wealth,  but  sunk  in  intemperance,  have  come  forward  and 
signed  the  pledge.  We  at  one  time  feared  that  our  better 
families  were  not  to  enjoy  this  blessing  which  the  common 
people  receive  so  gladly ;  but  we  now  believe  it  is  to  roll  over 
them,  and  that  many  a  family,  yet  having  all  the  means  of  com- 
fort and  luxury,  but  afflicted  with  an  intemperate  son  or  father, 
is  to  be  made  happy  by  this  great  reform. 

Almost  weekly  we  have  some  interesting  presentation  of  a 
banner  to  a  fire  or  hose  company,  which  has  adopted  the 
pledge.  This  transformation  of  these  companies  in  the  city, 
and  the  interest  they  manifest  in  the  cause,  together  with  the 
union  and  harmony  among  the  temperance  societies  now  in  the 
field,  and  their  joy  in  the  hope  that  our  city,  by  these  move- 
ments, is  to  be  relieved  from  the  most  intolerable  burden,  its 
thousands  of  licensed  and  unlicensed  grog-shops,  is  exceedingly 
animating. 

Bishop  Berkeley  thought  that  matter  was  ideal,  and  some 
men  have  deemed  that  there  was  no  reality  in  pain.  It  is  not 
surprising,  therefore,  that  some  should  think  that  the  cause  of 
temperance  is  in  a  state  of  "retrogression"  here,  and  that  much  at 
which  we  now  grasp  is  "  imaginary  and  deceptive."  A  blessed 
deception  to  many  a  poor  drunkard's  wife  and  famished  children. 

But  comparisons  with  the  past  are  not  always  wise.  The 
Bible  says  "  There  is  joy  in  heaven  over  one  sinner  that  re- 
penteth,  more  than  over  ninety  and  nine  just  persons  who  need 
no  repentance."  And  so  we  have  felt  about  these  reformed 
drunkards.  Old  laborers  in  the  field,  "  elder  brothers,"  who 
have  borne  the  heat  and  burden  of  the  day,  must  have  their 
reward ;  but  we  do  say,  "  Welcome  home  the  returning  prodi 
gals,"  and  we  must  believe  that  the  reform  of  some  thousands 
of  inebriates  in  our  city  is  an  achievement,  in  the  good  provi- 
dence of  God,  with  which  no  former  one  can  at  all  compare. 
It  is  saving  lost  men,  lost  families,  and  will  do  vastly  more 
than  all  former  movements  to  break  up  the  rum  trade  so  iuin  . 
ous  to  our  city. 


214  LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.  W.    HAWKINS. 

And  in  view  of  it  all  —  a  wonderful  work,  there  is  no  mis- 
take about  it  — it  is  doing  great  things  for  our  city  —  we  ask,  is 
it  not  time  for  some  of  our  distinguished  lawyers,  our  Griffins, 
our  Hoffmans,  our  Maxwells,  and  our  O'Connors,  like  Messrs. 
Briggs,  Marshall,  and  others,  to  come  forward  and  sign  the 
pledge,  and  advocate  this  cause?  Can  they  be  afraid  of  injur- 
ing their  business  ?  If  they  are,  surely  the  ministry  need  not 
be.  But  is  it  not  true  that  a  considerable  portion  of  the  minis- 
try of  this  city,  and  some  of  the  most  able  divines,  have  never 
yet  signed  a  total-abstinence  pledge,  nor  spoken  in  behalf  of  the 
total-abstinence  cause  ?  Would  they  not  now  effect  an  immense 
good  in  all  their  congregations,  if  they  would  as  a  body  come 
forward  and  sign  that  pledge,  and  publicly  commend  the  prin- 
ciple it  presents  ?  We  respectfully  lay  this  subject  at  their  feet ; 
for  they  are  men  who  love  to  do  good,  and  who  are  the  guides 
and  leaders  of  thousands  in  the  way  of  salvation.  We  see  not 
how  they  can  stand  aloof  at  this  interesting  moment.  The 
eyes  of  the  city,  the  eyes  of  the  nation,  are  upon  them.  If 
they  fear  evil  from  this  mighty  movement  of  the  people,  let 
them  come  forward  and  be  its  guides.  We  believe  it  is  God's 
work,  and  that,  as  God's  ministers,  they  are  bound  to  engage 
joyfully  in  it. 

At  least,  we  will  ask  them  to  remember,  in  all  their  suppli- 
cations at  the  throne  of  grace,  the  many  thousands  of  men  re- 
formed in  the  wonderful  providence  of  God  in  this  city  and 
throughout  the  land,  that  they  may  become  men  of  righteous- 
ness, and  thus  have  the  only  permanent  security  against  any 
return  to  their  unhappy  and  most  ruinous  courses. 

One  of  the  surest  indications  of  advance  in  the 
cause,  was  the  increasing  number  of  temperance  news- 
papers in  almost  every  State  in  the  Union.  Many  of 
these  were  weeklies,  and  were  conducted  with  an  ability 
highly  creditable  to  the  editors,  and  to  the  important  re- 
form which  they  sought  to  promote.  We  subjoin  a  list 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  215 

with  the  comments  of  the  Journal  of  the  American  Tem- 
perance Union.*  Their  number,  however,  was  con- 
stantly increasing,  and  a  few  years  furnished  large  ad- 
ditions to  the  list. 

So  wide  spread  was  the  movement,  and  so  thoroughly 
was  the  nation  aroused  to  a  sense  of  the  misery  result- 
ing from  the  use  and  traffic  in  intoxicating  drinks,  that 
newspapers  of  all  classes,  religious  and  political,  were 
filled  with  the  most  interesting  details  of  the  wonders 
that  had  been  achieved.  The  sale  and  manufacture 
was  rapidly  declining,  and  thousands  of  hearts  began 
to  hail  the  rapidly  approaching  day,  when  the  great 
scourge  of  intemperance  should  no  longer  afflict  the 

*  A  large  number  of  new  temperance  papers  have  recently  been  com- 
menced in  various  parts  of  the  country;  a  sure  index  of  the  great  advance 
of  the  cause. 

Among  the  new  papers  on  our  table  are  — 

The  New-York  Washingtonian,  edited  by  E.  Burns,  a  handsome  and 
well-furnished  sheet,  weekly. 

The  Louisville  Washingtonian,  weekly. 

The  Washington  Banner  and  Reserve  Temperance  Herald,  Medina,  O, 
semi-monthly. 

Boyle's  Temperance  Herald,  Massillon,  O. 

The  Troy  Temperance  Mirror,  weekly,  eight  page,  quarto. 

Essex  County  Washingtonian,  Salem  and  Lynn,  Mass.,  weekly,  folio. 

The  Columbian  Washingtonian,  Hudson,  N.  Y. 

Western  Reformer,  Madison,  Indiana,  weekly. 

The  Temperance  Union,  Kalcigh,  N.  C. 

The  Cold-  Water  Cup,  Fitchburg,  Mass.,  semi-monthly. 

The  Reformed  Drunkard,  Montpel'ier,  Vt.,  semi-monthly. 

Temperance  Agent,  Thompsontown,  Juniata  County,  Pa. 

Washingtonian,  Marietta,  Lancaster  County,  Pa. 

Washingtonian,  Lexington,  Ky. 

llaiupden  Washingtonian,  Springfield,  Mass. 

Temperance  Gem,  Boonsboro',  Md. 

Waterfall,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Temperance  Advocate  and  Juvenile  Miscellany,  North  Springfield,  Vt. 

Crystal  Fountain,  New  York. 


216  LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

people.  The  following  lines,  by  the  Rev.  John  Pierpont, 
exhibiting  the  onward  rush  of  the  new-born  enthusiasm 
of  the  age,  have  very  justly  been  much  admired. 
Thousands  of  hearts  were  inspired  with  new  zeal  by 
tieir  glowing  sentences. 

We  come,  we  come,  that  have  been  held 

In.  burning  chains  so  long ; 
We're  up !  and  on  we  come,  a  host 

Full  fifty  thousand  strong. 
The  chains  we've  snapped  that  held  us  rouad 

The  wine-vat  and  the  still ; 
Snapp'd  by  a  blow — nay,  by  a  word, 

That  mighty  word,  I  WILL  ! 

We  come  from  Belial's  palaces, 

The  tippling-shop  and  bar ; 
And  as  we  march,  those  gates  of  hell 

Feel  their  foundations  jar. 
The  very  ground,  that  oft  has  held 

All  night  our  throbbing  head, 
Knows  that  we're  up  —  no  more  to  fall, 

And  trembles  at  our  tread. 

From  dirty  den,  from  gutter  foul, 

From  watchhouse  and  from  prison, 
T7hero  they,  who  gave  a  pois'nous  gla.^3, 

Had  thrown  us,  have  we  risen  ; 
From  garret  high  have  hurried  down, 

From  cellar  stived  and  damp, 
Come  up  ;  till  alley,  lane,  and  street 

Echo  our  earthquake  tramp. 

And  on  —  and  on  —  a  swelling  host 

Of  temperance  men  we  come ; 
Contemning  and  defying  all 

The  powers  and  priests  of  rum. 
A  host  redeemed,  who've  drawn  the  sword, 

And  sharpened  up  its  edge, 
And  hewn  our  way,  through  hostile  rank?, 

To  the  teetotal  pledge. 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  217 

To  God  be  thanks,  who  pours  us  out 

Cold  water  from  his  hills, 
In  crystal  springs  and  bubbling  brooks, 

In  lakes  and  sparkling  rills  ! 
From  these,  to  quench  our  thirst,  we  come, 

With  freemen's  shout  and  song, 
A  host  already  numbering  more 

Than  fifty  thousand  strong 
19 


CHAPTER    XV. 

"  They're  gath'ring!  they're  gath'ringon  mountain  and  plain, 

They  grace  every  vale  and  o'ershadow  each  river, 
Each  mansion  and  cot  shall  be  vocal  again, 

With  the  soul-cheering  shout  of  '  Temp'rance  forever  ! ' 
The  pledge  of  the  free  to  the  breeze  is  unfurled, 

By  it  is  transmitted  our  freedom  and  fame, 
By  it  we  will  hasten  the  time  when  our  world 

Shall  be  strong  in  the  strength  of  Messiah's  loved  name." 

ON  Mr.  Hawkins'  return  to  Boston,  in  March,  he 
was  licensed  to  preach  the  gospel  by  his  Christian 
brethren  of  the  Methodist  Protestant  Church.  The 
motives  that  induced  him  to  take  this  step  were  of  the 
purest  kind  —  opening  to  him  as  it  did  greater  facilities 
for  being  useful  to  his  fellow-men.  It  frequently  hap- 
pened that  no  minister  was  present  at  his  meetings, 
which  he  always  insisted  should  be  opened  with  prayer. 
He  preferred  that  his  lectures  on  the  Sabbath  should 
assume  as  much  as  possible  the  religious  aspect ;  and 
it  was  his  custom  to  introduce  them  with  some  appro- 
priate selections  from  the  Scriptures.  A  rumor  having 
gone  abroad  that  he  intended  to  devote  himself  thence- 
forth to  the  duties  of  the  ministry,  the  following  article, 
under  his  sanction,  was  inserted  in  the  Mercantile 
Journal :  — 

It  has  lately  been  stated  that  this  distinguished  lecturer  on 
temperance  had  been  ordained  at  Maiden  as  a  Methodist 
preacher,  and  the  inference  from  this  fact  seems  to  be  that  he 
has  quietly  settled  down  at  Maiden  as  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel. 

(218) 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  219 

We  assure  our  readers  that  such  is  not  the  fact.  Mr.  Hawkins, 
although  ordained  as  a  preacher  of  the  gospel,  will  continue 
unabated  his  labors  in  the  cause  of  temperance,  for  the  work 
is  not  yet  finished,  and  he  will  not  relax  in  his  endeavors  to 
reform  the  drunkard  and  destroy  the  demoralizing  traffic  in 
intoxicating  drinks,  until  the  monster  Intemperance  is  banished 
from  the  shores  of  New  England.  No  pecuniary  considera- 
tion whatever  will  induce  him  to  desert  his  post  until  the 
temperance  reform  is  established  on  a  basis  which  cannot  be 
overthrown  or  shaken. 

After  enjoying  a  few  days  rest,  he  hastened  to  make 
preparations  for  fulfilling  his  engagements  in  various 
parts  of  New  England.  So  urgent  were  the  invitations 
extended  to  him,  and  so  ardent  was  his  enthusiasm  in 
the  cause,  that  he  seldom  spent  more  than  three  or  four 
days  in  a  month  with  his  family.  He  was  sufficiently 
recompensed  for  the  self-sacrifice,  by  the  consciousness 
that  there  were  thousands  of  families  to  whose  happi- 
ness his  labors  had  largely  contributed. 

From  the  2d  to  the  15th  of  April  he  visited  eleven 
towns  and  delivered  fourteen  addresses.  In  Haverhill, 
South  Reading,  Woburn,  Lowell,  Nashua,  N.  H.,  and 
in  Billerica,  large  audiences  were  gathered  and  many 
pledges  taken.  During  the  remainder  of  the  month  he 
visited  and  addressed  full  houses  in  fourteen  towns, 
witnessing  the  reclamation  of  hundreds  from  their 
ruinous  ways.  "  On  Saturday,  April  30th,"  he  remarks 
in  his  journal,  "  there  being  no  appointment,  and  finding 
myself  in  Worcester,  I  took  the  cars  to  spend  the 
Sabbath  in  Thompson,  Ct. ;"  where  but  a  few  months 
before  some  astonishing  reformations  had  taken  place. 
'I  witnessed,"  he  continues,  "  in  this  place  the  bap- 


220  LIFE   OF   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

tizingof  Capt.  B S by  immersion;  a  reformed 

drunkard  and  a  reformed  tavern-keeper." 

On  returning  to  Worcester  he  wrote  the  following 
letter  to  J.  W.  Goodrich,  Esq.,  editor  of  the  Worces- 
ter Waterfall :  — 

"WORCESTER,  May  5,  1842. 

MR.  GOODRICH:  Dear  Sir,  —  I  have  just  finished  some- 
thing of  a  tour  in  some  of  the  towns  of  Worcester  Co.,  of 
which,  according  to  my  promise,  I  will  now  give  you  a  very 
short  but  imperfect  account.  I  commenced  at  Hopkinton  on 
the  22d  of  April.  A  good  and  full  meeting.  A  great  deal 
has  been  done  here  in  the  cause  of  temperance.  Next  at  Clapp- 
ville  and  Leicester.  They  are  wide  awake  to  the  good  cause. 
I  next  went  to  Sutton.  Much  has  been  done  in  this  town.  A 
Temperance  House  has  been  opened  in  Sutton  Village  by 
Mr.  Woodbury,  and  is  conducted  on  true  temperance  princi- 
ples, and  should  be  patronized.  You  and  I,  Mr.  Editor,  had 
the  pleasure  of  attending  a  temperance  supper  there,  provided 
by  Mr.  Woodbury  on  the  occasion,  an  account  of  which  you 
have  already  furnished  your  readers  in  the  last  number  of  the 
Waterfall.  *  In  West  Sutton  rum  is  still  sold  at  a  place  called 

*  The  editor  of  the  Waterfall  thus  alludes  to  the  reformation  in  Sutton, 
and  the  opening  of  the  first  temperance  hotel.  The  intemperance  of 
this  town,  it  seems,  had  given  great  offence  to  its  neighbors. 

"TEETOTALLERS'   JOLLIFICATION. 

"  '  Sound  the  loud  trumpet  o'er  mountain  and  lea, 
The  monster  has  fallen  and  Sutton  is  free.' 

"  This  joyous  event  was  celebrated  last  Monday  night  by  the  good 
people  of  that  village,  with  a  series  of  very  appropriate  and  delightful 
exercises.  At  seven  o'clock  the  great  apostle  of  temperance,  Mr. 
Hawkins,  commenced  an  address  to  a  large  audience  assembled  in  the 
church,  and  continued  it  for  one  hour  and  a  half,  in  a  strain  of  surpass- 
ing eloquence,  argument,  feeling,  and  power.  The  next  subject  to  be 
discussed  was  a  most  excellent  'supper,  prepared  by  Mr.  J.  C.  Woodbury, 
keeper  of  the  new  Temperance  House,  and  which,  for  want  of  room  on 
his  own  premises,  was  spread  in  the  vestry  of  the  church.  Plates  were 


LIFE   01    uOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  221 

a  tavern,  and  at  a  stove,  for  the  public  good  and  to  the  private 
injury  of  the  neighbors  of  those  who  have  the  public  and  pri- 
vate good  of  the  people  at  heart.  At  Northborough,  Oxford, 
and  Spencer,  they  are  doing  much  in  the  cause,  but  still  there 
is  yet  much  to  be  done.  At  Webster  and  Southbridge  were 
two  of  the  best  meetings  I  have  ever  attended.  The  people 
seem  to  understand  and  feel  the  subject  as  they  should.  At 
Boylston,  on  "Wednesday,  May  4th,  I  talked  in  the  afternoon 
to  the  children  in  the  Town  House  ;  meeting  well  attended. 
The  children  looked  well  and  paid  good  attention.  At  night 
I  lectured  in  Rev.  Mr.  Sandford's  church.  Meeting  well  at- 
tended. A  great  deal  has  been  done  in  this  town  for  the  cause. 
On  Thursday  evening  I  lectured  in  the  hall  at  New  Worcester ; 
a  smart  little  village,  a  mile  or  two  from  the  centre  of  the 
town.  Meeting  well  attended  by  the  residents  of  this  and  the 
adjoining  town  of  Auburn.  Cause  doing  well.  I  cannot  close 
my  remarks  without  saying  something  of  the  town  of  Charl- 
ton,  where,  at  my  suggestion,  Mr.  Editor,  you  announced  an 
appointment  for  me,  in  the  Waterfall,  and  where,  at  the  sug- 
gestion of  the  letter  from  your  friend  in  Charlton,  I  did  not 
go  to  fulfil  it.  A  great  deal  has  been  said  about  its  being  a 
hard  place.  I  would  respectfully  ask  the  question,  has  not  its 

laid  for  a  hundred  and  twenty ;  but,  on  account  of  the  weather  only 
:\l>out  one  hundred  ladies  and  gentlemen  took  seats  at  the  table.  The 
presidential  chair  was  presented  to,  and  very  ably  and  gracefully  occu- 
pied by,  Mr.  John  Gambler,  of  Wilkinsonville.  The  blessing  was  asked 
by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Tracy,  and  then,  after  the  subjects  were  properly  subdi- 
vided and  distributed  for  discussion  under  their  appropriate  heads,  there 
arose  such  a.  jaw  all  along  the  line  of  the  three  extended  tables  as  may 
seem  somewhat  surprising  to  those  so  unfortunate  as  to  bo  absent,  and 
especially  when  we  tell  them,  that  each  seemed  to  take  and  reciprocate 
the  JAWING  of  his  neighbor  with  the  greatest  good  humor  and  delight ; 
and  that  although  it  continued,  with  some  modification,  for  about  two 
hours  and  a  half,  the  women  did  not  give  the  last  words.  The  speeches 
at  the  banquet,  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  J.  W.  Goodrich  and  others,  were  inter- 
spersed with  appropriate  sentiments,  and  cheering  songs,  from  several 
gentlemen." 

19* 


222  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

backwardness  in  the  cause  of  temperance  grown  much  out  of 
the  manner  in  which  they  have  been  approached  on  the  sub- 
ject ?  Has  not  denunciation  been  too  much  substituted  for 
moral  suasion  ?  I  merely  ask  the  question.  I  am  persuaded, 
if  properly  approached,  they  are  as  easily  convinced  as  their 
neighbors ;  at  all  events,  I  am  determined  to  go  there  and 
spend  two  or  three  days  with  them,  and  form  some  acquaint- 
ance with  the  people ;  and  if  they  will  but  listen  to  me,  I  will 
pledge  myself  to  say  nothing  that  will  wound  the  feelings  of 
any  man,  but,  on  the  contrary,  will  treat  every  man  with  the 
utmost  respect,  feeling  assured  that  the  same  treatment  will 
cordially  be  extended  to  me. 

I  shall  give  due  notice  of  my  coming. 

Yours,  &c.,  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

In  his  journal,  under  date  of  the  19th,  we  find  the 
following  entry :  — 

Met  my  son,  "William  George,  at  Grafton  Station,  and  con- 
veyed him  to  Wilbraham  Academy. 

It  was  not  until  after  much  consideration  and  consul- 
tation with  friends  that  he  decided  to  send  his  children 
to  that  institution.  Never  did  he  have  cause  to  regret 
the  step.  Returning  to  Boston  on  the  20th,  he  pro- 
ceeded, on  the  next  day,  to  Dover,  N.  H.,  thence  to 
Henniker,  by  way  of  Nashua ;  in  all  these  places 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  people  continued  unabated ;  the 
churches  were  all  well  filled.  After  referring  to  the 
great  interest  exhibited  at  Nashua,  he  says,  "  I  fear 
the  cause  will  suffer  some  here  by  the  loss  of  one  of 
its  best  friends,  in  the  death  of  Judge  Darling." 

The  26th  of  May,  1842,  was  a  proud  day  for  Mas- 
sachusetts. It  witnessed  the  gathering  of  a  larger 
number  of  temperance  men  in  the  city  of  Boston  than 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  223 

had  ever  met  there  before  at  any  one  time.  It  was  the 
day  appointed  for  the  assembling  of  the  State  Wash- 
ingtonian  Convention.  The  cars  on  the  different  rail- 
roads brought  into  the  city  on  the  previous  day  a  host 
of  delegates;  but  early  in  the  morning  of  the  26th, 
throngs  of  people  were  pouring  into  the  city  by  every 
avenue,  some  on  foot,  and  hundreds  by  private  con- 
veyances, all  eager  to  participate  in  the  exercises  of  the 
day.  At  9  A.M.  the  Convention  assembled  in  the  hall 
of  the  House  of  Representatives.  The  papers  of  the 
day  speak  of  its  having  been  filled  to  overflowing. 
The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Samuel  F.  Hoi- 
brook,  the  active  and  indefatigable  President  of  the 
Washington  Temperance  Society  of  Boston.  The 
Hon.  Seth  Sprague,  Jr.,  of  Duxbury,  was  appointed 
President,  supported  by  six  Vice  Presidents.  The  Con- 
vention being  thoroughly  organized,  it  adjourned  to 
meet  again  at  3  P.M.  A  procession  was  then  formed 
on  the  Common,  under  the  direction  of  Capt.  W.  S. 
Baxter,  the  chief  marshal.  Over  three  thousand  per- 
sons marched  in  its  ranks,  with  banners  and  badges, 
and  what  was  best  of  all,  clear  heads,  and  warm  hearts 
beating  with  high  resolves.  We  subjoin  a  note  giving 
the  particulars  of  this  procession,  which  will  well  repay 
perusal.*  On  the  re-assembling  of  the  Convention  in  the 

*(PROM  THE  MERCANTILE  JOURNAL,  MAY  27,  1842.) 

After  the  Convention  was  organized,  at  a  quarter  past  ten  o'clock, 
it  adjourned  to  meet  again  at  the  State  House  at  three  o'clock,  and  a  pro- 
cession was  formed  on  the  Common,  under  the  direction  of  Capt.  W.  S 
I5axter,  the  chief  marshal,  whose,  arrangements  were  well  conceived,  and 
promptly  mid  fjiithfully  executed.  The  procession  was  formed  l>v  coun- 
ties, and  when  it  took  up  its  line  of  march,  to  the  sound  of  music,  with 
banners  waving,  and  striking  and  ingenious  emblems  of  the  blessings  of 
temperance  displayed,  it  presented  a  noble  and  imposing  sight.  All  so- 


224  LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

afternoon,  according  to  adjournment,  an  immense  con- 

cieties,  or  persons  who  had  joined  the  ranks  of  total  abstinence  from  all 
intoxicating  drinks,  were  invited  to  march  in  the  procession. 

Here  was  a  broad  and*  elevated  platform  on  which  all  could  meet,  and 
here  were  seen  men  of  all  political  parties,  of  various  religious  creeds,  of 
every  occupation  and  calling,  individuals  of  all  ages,  from  the  youthful 
stripling  to  the  patriarch  of  three  score  and  ten,  nil  engaged  in  one  un- 
dertaking, all  united  in  promoting  a  single  object,  and  that  object  one  of 
the  noblest  that  ever  excited  human  beings  to  action  ;  to  raise  the  lowly, 
to  comfort  the  afflicted,  to  prevent  crime  and  woe,  to  carry  hope  and  joy 
where  sorrow  and  despair  had  long  reigned,  to  scatter  blessings  through 
the  land,  and  bid  the  heart  of  the  philanthropist  rejoice,  —  in  a  word,  to 
banish  from  our  midst,  forever,  the  monster  Intemperance ! 

The  procession  took  up  its  line  of  march  at  twenty  minutes  after  eleven 
o'clock.  The  Chief  Marshal  was  followed  by  the  societies  and  delegates 
from  the  County  of  Middlesex,  preceded  by  the  Naval  Washington  Total- 
Abstinence  Society,  apprentice  boys,  and  men  from  the  receiving-ship 
Ohio,  and  the  Navy  Yard  temperance  seamen.  Then  came  the  Counties 
of  Essex  and  Suffolk ;  after  which,  officers  of  the  convention,  the  reverend 
clergy,  strangers  in  the  city,  and  others  professing  the  Washingtonian 
principles.  Then,  in  succession,  the  Counties  of  Worcester,  Hampshire, 
Hampden,  Franklin,  Berkshire,  Norfolk,  Bristol,  Plymouth,  Barnstable, 
Nantucket,  and  Dukes. 

There  were  many  banners  in  the  procession,  some  of  which  were  very 
neat  and  appropriate  to  the  occasion,  and  attracted  much  attention.  We 
are  able  to  give  but  a  few  of  the  devices  and  inscriptions. 

The  banner  of  the  Roxbury  Total  Abstinence  Society  represented 
Hannah,  the  daughter  of  John  Hawkins,  destroying  the  hydra  of  Intem- 
perance. Another  banner  in  the  same  delegation  represented  Christ  at 
the  well  with  the  Woman  of  Samaria ;  motto,  "  Give  me  this  water,  that 
I  thirst  not."  The  banner  of  the  Dorchester  Total  Abstinence  Society 
represented  the  figure  of  Hope,  beautifully  executed ;  motto,  "  Hope  for 
the  fallen."  The  East  Weymouth  Total  Abstinence  Society  had  a  banner 
which  displayed  a  cluster  of  grapes,  and  a  sheaf  of  grain  ;  motto,  "  Food, 
if  eaten ;  poison,  if  drunk."  The  Fall  River  Total  Abstinence  Society  had 
a  banner  giving  a  neat  view  of  Justice  with  her  scales ;  motto,  "  Our 
cause  is  good,  and  we  will  do  it."  Pawtucket  and  Central  Factory  Total 
Abstinence  Society  had  a  banner  with  a  fine  representation  of  a  well ; 
motto,  — 

"  Drink  from  the  bubbling  fountain — drink  it  free  ; 
'Twas  good  for  Samson,  and  'tis  good  for  me." 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  225 

course  of  people  filled  the  Representatives  Hall ;  every 
seat  was  occupied,  the  galleries  were  crowded,  and 
many  stood  in  the  passage-ways. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Holbrook,  the  four  following  res- 
olutions were  adopted  unanimously,  and  without  dis- 
cussion. 

South  Boston  Total  Abstinence  Society  had  a  banner  representing  a  rum 
tavern,  with  its  landlord  thrusting  out  of  his  doors  a  poor  inebriate ;  a 
well  in  perspective.  The  Rehoboth  Total  Abstinence  Society  had  a  ban- 
ner with  four  views,  representing  Poverty,  Death,  Health,  and  Prosperity. 
The  Boston  Temperance  Society  had  a  banner  with  a  fountain ;  motto, 
"  That's  the  drink  for  me."  The  East  Cambridge  Temperance  Union 
had  a  banner  on  which  was  inscribed,  "  Kindness  the  most  efficient  Law." 
The  banner  of  the  Washington  Total  Abstinence  fiociety,  of  Lynn,  rep- 
resented a  man  drinking  from  the  bucket  at  a  well ;  motto,  "  The  old 
Oaken  Bucket."  This  society  numbers  two  thousand  four  hundred  mem- 
bers. The  New  York  Washington  Temperance  Society  bore  a  banner  on 
which  was  painted  a  portrait  of  Washington ;  motto,  "  Total  Abstinence 
from  all  that  Intoxicates."  This  society  also  carried  a  beautiful  banner 
presented  to  them  by  the  ladies  of  New  York,  representing  "  a  happy 
wife,"  with  appropriate  mottoes. 

The  head  of  the  procession  reached  the  Old  State  House  at  twelve 
o'clock,  and  a  large  crowd  was  collected  in  State  Street  to  witness  the 
scene.  The  time  occupied  in  passing,  at  quick  step,  was  fifteen  minutes, 
and  the  number  of  persons  in  the  procession  is  variously  estimated  at 
from  three  thousand  to  three  thousand  five  hundred.  The  number  of 
seamen  and  apprentices  from  the  receiving-ship  Ohio  was  about  three 
hundred.  They  were  accompanied  by  the  Naval  Band,  and  looked  ex- 
ceedingly well.  A  detachment  of  the  "  Boston  Cold  Water  Army,"  num- 
bering some  hundreds,  was  also  in  the  procession,  witli  banners  represent- 
ing various  emblematic  devices. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  for  us  to  state,  that  as  the  procession  moved 
through  the  principal  streets,  it  attracted  the  attention  of  our  citizens, 
who  gathered  in  groups  on  the  sidewalks  and  door-steps,  at  the  casements 
and  on  the  house-tops,  and  welcomed  them  with  warmth,  and  cheered 
them  as  they  passed  along.  Many  a  silent  prayer  for  their  continued  suc- 
;is  ollered  to  Heaven  by  the  fair  beings  who  gazed  with  a  deep  in- 
ie,n->t  (in  thes£ene,  and  many  a  blessing  was  invoked  on  their  heads  by 
the  wife,  the  mother,  the  sister,  or  the  friend,  whose  happiness  had  been 
destroyed  by  Intemperance. 


226  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

Resolved,  That  we  rejoice  at  this  mighty  assemblage  of  free- 
men—  freemen  in  the  highest  sense  of  the  word  —  in  this 
venerable  hall,  devoted  to  the  great  public  interests  of  this 
ancient  Commonwealth;  and  with  our  congratulations  and 
thanksgivings  we  would  now  mingle  fervent  prayers  to  God, 
that  he  would  bless  always  this  enterprise  of  benevolence,  of 
religion,  of  Christian  charity ;  and  in  making  those  who  act 
in  and  for  it  faithful  to  their  pledges  and  to  all  their  duties,  — 
that  he  would  cause  this  great  work  to  be  now  and  forever 
instrumental  in  accomplishing  the  greatest  human  good. 

Resolved,  That  we  see  in  this  and  similar  conventions 
throughout  the  land,  a  principle  in  operation  about  which  no 
question  can  be  raised,  as  it  applies  equally  to  men  in  every 
situation  in  life,  and  knows  no  difference  in  sect  or  party, 
whether  of  politics  or  religion. 

Resolved,  That  in  union  for  the  right  there  is  true  strength ; 
and  that  to  promote  such  union  has  been  the  constant  effort  of 
the  real  friends  of  temperance.  Let  every  friend  of  the  cause 
now  see  to  it  that  he  labors  for  union,  that  he  is  ever  ready  to 
make  a  sacrifice  of  unimportant  considerations,  in  the  convic- 
tion that  by  so  doing  he  studies  his  own  progress  in  the  truth, 
and  by  his  example  commends  it  to  the  love  and  obedience  of 
his  fellow-men. 

Resolved,  That  reformation  from  intemperance  is  the  con- 
quest of  principle  over  a  most  debasing  and  enslaving  habit ; 
and  that  to  secure  all  the  blessings  of  that  reformation  it  must 
be  followed  at  once  by  an  untiring  industry,  which  can  alone 
produce  true  independence,  and  by  an  habitual  reliance  on  the 
divine  aid,  which  can  alone  deliver  from  the  power  of  tempta- 
tion. 

Upon  the  reading  of  the  fifth  resolution,  a  discussion 
arose,  which  was  commenced  by  Mr.  Grant.  This 
resolution  was  as  follows :  — 

Resolved,  That  the  unparalleled  success  of  the  Washington- 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  227 

ian  movement  in  reforming  the  drunkard,  and  inducing  the 
retailer  to  cease  his  unholy  traffic,  affords  conclusive  evidence 
that  moral  suasion  is  the  only  true  and  proper  basis  of  action  in 
the  temperance  cause  ;  and  that  we  therefore  earnestly  recom- 
mend to  its  friends  not  to  compromise  the  high  and  command- 
ing position  it  now  occupies. 

Mr.  Grant  stated  that  'he  himself  was  opposed  to  the 
passage  of  the  resolution ;  he  thought  it  too  strong, 
but  that  he  was  instructed  by  his  colleagues  to  draw  it 
as  above.  His  objection  was  to  the  expression,  "  the 
only  true  and  proper  basis,"  etc.  Mr.  Hawkins  fol- 
lowed. He  said  that  the  rum-seller  had  no  principle. 
He  avowed  himself  opposed  to  the  resolution  as  it 
stood.  He  wanted  the  aid  of  the  law.  Moral  suasion 
was  an  excellent  thing,  but  it  should  go  hand  in  hand 
with  the  law.  Dr.  Jewett  next  addressed  the  conven- 
tion at  some  length,  and  advocated  the  same  doctrine 
as  Mr.  Hawkins.  He  did  not  wish  the  Washington- 
ians  to  prosecute  as  a  society,  but  he  would  have  in- 
dividuals do  it  if  they  wished.  The  Doctor  thought 
we  must  have  law  as  rum-sellers  had  no  principle,  or  it 
was  so  steeped  in  rum  it  could  not  be  got  at,  and  they 
must  be  driven,  as  they  could  not  be  persuaded.  Mr. 
Baxter  moved  that  the  word  "  only "  be  stricken  out, 
and  Dr.  Carpenter  withdrawing  his  amendment,  Mi 
Baxter's  passed  unanimously ;  the  resolution  was  ac- 
cepted. 

The  above  report  presents  but  a  very  brief  statement 
of  the  addresses  made  and  the  arguments  adduced  by 
the  various  speakers,  in  support  of  their  opinions ;  but 
.there  is  sufficient  to  indicate  the  change  that  was  grad- 
ually taking  place  in  the  public  mind.  Moral  suasian, 
the  law  of  love,  affectionate  entreaty  with  the  rum- 


228  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

seller,  had  in  a  great  measure  failed.  These  principles 
addressed  to  the  victims  of  the  business  had  been  won- 
derfully successful.  But  those  thousands  of  rescued 
human  beings  were  not  all  endowed  with  such  powers 
of  resistance  as  to  withstand  temptation,  and  the  wiles 
and  blandishments  of  the  tempter.  Hundreds,  alas ! 
were  too  often  entrapped  in  the  net  of  the  destroyer ; 
such  instances  were  known  to  have  occurred  in  every 
village  and  town  in  the  United  States,  where  these  un- 
holy trades,  the  making  and  vending  of  intoxicating 
drinks,  were  unchecked. 

To  entreat  the  rum-seller  was,  too  often,  only  to  in- 
voke insult  and  denunciation.  The  conviction  from 
this  state  of  facts  was  fairly  and  truthfully  arrived  at, 
that  no  radical  cure  for  the  evil  could  be  found,  except 
in  withholding  licenses,  and,  if  necessary,  a  resort  to 
prohibitory  enactments,  as  in  cases  of  trades  regarded 
as  nuisances  to  society ;  the  object  of  this  convention, 
so  far  as  this  question  was  involved,  was  accomplished 
in  presenting  the  subject  fairly  to  the  public.  We  re- 
turn to  Mr.  Hawkins'  journal :  — 

Wednesday,  June  1st,  1842. —  Rest.  June  2,  lectured  in 
the  Town  Hall  in  Manchester,  N.  H.,  to  a  crowded  house. 
This  is  a  flourishing  manufacturing  village,  destined  no  doubt 
to  become  a  second  Lowell ;  but  intemperance  prevails  here 
to  some  extent.  Lectured  again,  June  3,  in  the  Town  Hall ; 
the  people  are  waking  up  to  the  cause. 

After  fulfilling  a  large  number  of  engagements  in 
New  Hampshire,  he  returned  to  Boston  on  the  8th  of 
June,  when  he  makes  this  entry  in  his  journal:  — 

Being  much  worn  down  by  constant  labors,  I  gave  up  many 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  229 

of  my  appointments  in  New  Hampshire,  and  shall  remain  in 
Boston  some  days  to  rest. 

Becoming  convinced  that  the  climate  of  Boston  was 
injurious  to  his  wife's  health,  he  determined  to  take  up 
his  residence  in  Worcester  as  soon  as  circumstances 
would  permit.  He  regarded  that  town  as  nearer  the 
centre  of  the  field  in  which  he  proposed  for  several 
months  to  labor,  and  he  would  there  be  nearer  to  his 
children,  who  were  all,  in  a  short  time,  to  be  placed  in 
the  academy  at  Wilbraham. 

The  people  of  Worcester  were  much  attached  to 
Mr.  Hawkins,  on  account,  perhaps,  of  the  wonderful 
changes  which  through  his  agency  the  year  previous 
had  been  wrought  among  them.  A  vigorous  Wash- 
ington Temperance  Society  was  formed  soon  after  he 
delivered  his  first  three  lectures  in  that  place.  He  found 
also  in  J.  W.  Goodrich,  Esq.,  then  residing  in  Worcester, 
a  gentleman  of  most  estimable  character,  a  devoted 
friend ;  and  during  the  many  years  in  which  he  had  the 
editorial  care  'of  the  Worcester  Waterfall,  he  never 
failed  to  speak  in  the  most  encouraging  manner  of 
Mr.  Hawkins  and  his  labors.  Both  have  now  gone  to 
the  enjoyment  of  the  rest  above.  With  these  remarks 
we  introduce  the  following  letter  from  Mr.  Hawkins  to 
his  son,  at  the  date  of  which  his  other  children  had 
not  been  placed  at  the  academy:  — 

BOSTON,  June  15,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  fully  intended  to  have  removed  with 
the  family  to  Worcester,  but  your  mother  was  taken  very  ill 
yesterday,  but  is  much  better  to-day;  it  is  thought  best  by  Dr. 
dimming  not  to  move  for  a  few  days. 

On  Saturday  I  return  to  New  Hampshire  to  complete  some 

20 


230  LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

appointments  which  I  left  unfinished ;  shall  return  on  or  about 
the  30th  of  this  month,  and  move  to  Worcester  on  the  1st  of 
July ;  and  on  the  4th  be  in  New  York,  and  return  the  7th  or 
8th.  Should  you  wish,  you  can  come  down  to  Worcester  on 
the  morning  of  the  1st,  [July].  If  we  have,  or  have  not  ar- 
rived, go  to  Mr.  Congden's ;  you  can  spend  the  4th  there.  Re- 
member, this  is  as  you  please.  I  want  you  to  write  me  imme- 
diately on  the  receipt  of  this ;  direct  your  letter  to  Boston, 
whether  I  am  here  or  not,  and  let  me  know  every  thing ;  how 
you  get  along,  with  whom  you  board,  and  how  you  like  the 
institution. 

I  cannot  now  write  what  I  wish  to  say  to  you  in  regard  to 
your  future  welfare.  I  have  now  an  opportunity  of  giving  you 
a  finished  education,  and  wish  to  see  you  and  talk  with  you  on 
the  subject.  I  therefore  think  you  had  better  come  down  to 
Worcester,  as  I  shall  not  have  time  to  come  to  Wilbraham, 
and  then  we  will  have  a  talk  about  "  matters  and  things." 

Pray,  my  son,  "  and  in  every  thing  give  thanks,"  and  God 
will  direct  your  steps  aright.  Pray  for  me,  pray  for  the  family, 
read  your  Bible,  read  it  on  your  knees  with  prayer. 

While  writing,  your  mother  is  sitting  up  and  is  much  better, 
and  entirely  out  of  danger.  I  am  not  now  under  the  direction 
of  the  Committee. 

I  know  nothing  more  to  write  at  present. 

I  remain,  my  dear  son, 

Your  father,  in  haste, 

JOHN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins  had  now  successfully  completed  his 
engagement  with  the  Boston  Committee  \  their  encour- 
agement and  patronage  had  been  the  means  of  placing 
him  in  a  position  of  extensive  usefulness.  His  earnest- 
ness and  simplicity  of  character  had  everywhere  in- 
spired confidence,  and  applications  for  his  services 
poured  in  from  all  parts  of  New  England.  Resuming 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  231 

his  labors  in  New  Hampshire  on  the  18th  of  June,  he 
visited  Franklin,  Boscawen,  Canterbury,  Loudon  Vil- 
lage, spending  several  days  in  each,  and  speaking  with 
great  effect  to  large  audiences.  His  journal  furnishes 
evidence  of  a  vast  amount  of  labor  performed  in  each 
village  by  constant  visiting  through  the  day,  in  addi- 
tion to  his  public  lecturing. 
His  journal  continues:  — 

Thursday,  June  23d. — Lectured  in  Chichester  ;  something 
lius  been  done  here  in  the  cause ;  but  cider-drinking  exerts 
considerable  influence  against  the  cause,  as  many  of  the  most 
influential  men  drink  largely,  and  are  therefore  a  hindrance  in 
the  way  of  the  drunkard's  reformation.  Their  influence  is  now 
the  greatest  with  which  we  have  to  contend  in  New  England ; 
but  we  are  fast  gaining  ground. 

On  the  26th  he  gave  two  lectures  to  the  people  of 
Meredith  Village ;  here  a  large  meeting  had  assem- 
bled. At  2  P.M.  he  addressed  them  in  a  grove  near 
the  town,  and  at  5  P.M.  in  the  "  Old  Saw  Mill " ;  much 
feeling  was  exhibited.  He  alludes  in  his  journal  to  a 
good  Temperance  House  which  had  been  opened  in 
the  place.  So  deep  was  the  interest  felt  that  he  was 
induced  to  remain  the  next  day,  and  spoke  to  an  over- 
flowing house;  a  large  number  of  pledges  were  taken. 
The  same  enthusiasm  followed  him  to  Lake  Village, 
Francestown  ;  "  a  beautiful  village,"  "  an  overflowing 
house,"  and  "  deep  interest  in  the  subject  of  temper- 
ance." 

On  the  1st  of  July  Mr.  Hawkins  removed  with  his 
laniily  to  Worcester,  and  was  cordially  welcomed. 
His  friend  Goodrich  thus  heralds  his  coming  in  the 
Waterfall :  — 


232  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

J.  II.  W.  Hawkins,  the  celebrated  pioneer  and  efficient  ad- 
vocate of  Washington ian  principles,  we  are  authorized  to  say, 
has  closed  his  year's  engagement  with  the  Boston  Committee, 
has  removed  his  family  to  Worcester,  and  will  make  this  the 
place  of  his  residence.  He  will  then  have  his  time  and  move- 
ments at  his  own  disposal,  and  will  attend  to  any  application 
for  his  services,  as  a  Washingtonian  Missionary,  that  may  be 
directed  to  him  at  Worcester,  post-paid,  or  to  the  care  of  Jesse 
W.  Goodrich. 

On  the  same  day  of  his  arrival  he  "  continued  his  jour- 
ney to  New  York,  to  celebrate  the  4th  of  July,  which 
was  done  by  a  mass  meeting  of  the  Chelsea  Temper- 
ance Society,  at  the  foot  of  49th  Street,  in  a  beautiful 
grove."  "  On  the  7th  of  July  returned  to  Worcester,  and 
after  some  consultation  with  my  family  and  friends, 
came  to  the  conclusion  to  place  my  daughters  Eliza- 
beth and  Hannah,  with  William  George  and  Arthur 
Holmes,  at  Wilbraham  Academy." 

The  commemoration  of  the  national  independence  in 
1842  was  made  the  occasion  for  great  rejoicing  among 
the  friends  of  temperance  in  the  United  States.  Per- 
haps never  before  had  that  day  witnessed  the  assem- 
bling together  of  such  large  masses  of  men,  women, 
and  children,  in  churches,  in  halls,  and  in  groves,  to  re- 
joice with  each  other  over  the  emancipation  of  thou- 
sands from  the  slavery  of  a  debased  appetite.  Almost 
every  town  in  New  England,  in  the  Middle,  Western, 
and  in  most  of  the  Southern  States,  celebrated  the  day 
with  processions,  speeches,  music,  and  banners.  But 
while  there  was  cause  for  rejoicing,  there  was  yet  much 
cause  for  humiliation. 

The  judicious  editor  of  the  American  Temperance 
Union  seemed  disposed  to  moderate,  and  very  justly 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  233 

too,  the  transports  of  the  people ;  in  the  August  num- 
ber of  his  Journal  he  remarks  :  — 

Many  an  army  has  sent  up  the  shout  of  victory,  but  an  hour 
before  its  downfall.  While  there  are  forty  million  gallons  of  in- 
toxicating drinks  annually  sold  and  drank  in  the  country,  it  is 
no  time  for  a  temperance  jubilee  ;  and  while  some  ministers 
and  Christians,  patriots  and  statesmen,  and  some  of  our  most 
enlightened  and  influential  families,  will  at  every  social  party 
circulate  and  drink  fiery  liquors,  seeming  to  take  pleasure  in 
bidding  defiance,  with  open  windows,  to  all  our  efforts,  and 
even  some  of  the  best  men  in  our  national  councils  are  dying, 
of  drunkenness,  there  is  cause  for  humiliation  and  deep  anxiety. 
But  the  4th  of  July,  1842,  has  told  great  things  for  us.  It  was 
a  day  of  wonders.  Could  an  angel  from  heaven  have  flown 
over  our  land  and  witnessed,  on  that  day,  the  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  beautiful  processions,  seen  the  lost  reclaimed  to 
life,  and  witnessed  the  universal  sobriety,  order,  and  joy  —  the 
blessedness  of  ten  thousand  hearts  but  recently  miserable  be- 
yond what  language  could  express  in  their  connection  with  a 
drunken  husband  and  father,  surely  he  would  have  sousded 
long  and  loud  the  trump  of  praise  to  Him  who  has  remembered 
us  in  mercy.  Every  political  paper  agreed  in  saying  that 
our  city  presented  an  unusual  spectacle  of  sobriety  and  order. 
There  were  comparatively  few  booths  around  the  Park  and  but 
little  drunkenness  was  anywhere  visible.* 

*  While  Mr.  Hawkins  was  in  New  York,  July  4th,  his  services  in  the 
cause  of  temperance  did  not  fail  to  receive  honorable  notice  at  the  various 
celebrations  elsewhere  on  that  day.  At  the  town  of  Sutton  there  was  a 
large  gathering,  and  several  distinguished  speakers  were  present;  among 
them  the  Rev.  John  Pierpont,  of  Boston.  Mr.  Hawkins'  valuable  efforts 
for  the  spread  of  temperance  in  this  town,  have  already  been  noticed ; 
once  notorious  for  its  intemperance,  it  now  began  to  be  noted  for  so- 
briety. 

After  the  conclusion  of  Kev.  Mr.  1'icrpont's  speech,  which  is  spoken  of 
as  an  able  effort,  (lie  company  sat  down  to  a  well-loaded  table,  in  the 
20* 


234  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Lecturing  every  day  in  various  parts  of  Massachu- 
setts, from  the  10th  to  the  17th  of  July,  he  returned  to 
Boston.  "  On  this  day,  Sunday,"  he  says  in  his  jour- 
nal, "lectured  to  the  inhabitants  of  Somerville  (a 
suburban  town  of  Boston),  from  the  top  of  Prospect 
Hill ;  the  attendance  was  very  large."  On  the  same 
day  he  addressed  the  following  letter  to  his  sister,  Mrs. 

Schaeffer :  — 

BOSTON,  July  17th,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER,  —  I  have  suffered  too  much  time  to  pass 
without  letting  you  hear  from  me,  knowing  how  glad  you  are 
at  all  times  to  hear  from  one  you  so  much  love.  My  dear  sis- 
ter, at  times  I  can  hardly  realize  the  great  contrast  in  my  con- 
dition, comparing  the  past  with  the  present.  The  longer  I  live, 
and  the  farther  I  ad%-ance  in  this  holy  cause,  the  greater  and 
heavier  I  feel  the  responsibility  resting  upon  me,  and  the  more 
confidence  I  have  that  my  heavenly  Father  will  sustain  me. 
Yes,  my  dear  sister,  he  has  sustained  me  in  soul  and  body,  and 
I  have  faith  to  believe  he  will  continue  so  to  do  while  I  put 
my  trust  in  him. 

Since  my  last  visit  to  Baltimore  I  have  been  constantly 
travelling,  and  preaching  or  lecturing ;  lecturing  most  of  the 
time ;  and  the  cause  has  not  lost  any  of  its  energy  in  New 
England.  I  think  I  can  say  it  is  gaining  confidence,  and  is 
working  powerfully  on  the  minds  of  a  class  the  most  difficult 
to  reach ;  I  mean  the  moderate  drinker  of  strong  drinks.  He, 
like  every  poor  unfortunate  drunkard,  thinks  himself  secure  in 
his  own  resolutions  ;  and  how  many  ministers  of  the  Gospel, 
and  professing  Christians,  of  the  best  standing  in  church  and 
state,  have  tampered  with  the  weakest  even  of  intoxicating 
drinks,  yes,  the  purest  wine  and  cider,  until  it  has  stung  them 
to  the  very  soul.  No  man  in  first  drinking  over  intended  to 

largest  hall  of  the  Temperance  House.     Many  sentiments  of  great  beauty 
and  appropiateness  were  offered. 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  235 

make  himself  a  drunkard  ;  the  strongest-minded  men  that  ever 
lived  have  been  slain  by  this  monster,  and  yet  the  moderate 
drinker  sings  himself  to  sleep  in  the  arms  of  self-security,  but 
to  wake  up  and  find  himself  a  drunkard,  and  then,  the  diffi- 
culty of  reforming,  and  when  reformed,  to  stay  so !  He  no 
longer  can  be  a  moderate  drinker  ;  his  resolutions,  his  promises, 
and  his  prayers,  are  as  empty  as  the  wind  ;  he  has  only  to  see 
or  even  smell  the  poison,  and  he  is  borne  away  by  an  uncon- 
trollable thirst.  Thus  he  lives  a  miserable  slave  to  one  of  the 
worst  appetites  formed  in  man. 

My  dear  sister,  I  write  from  experience.  None  of  you  ever 
knew  the  half  of  my  sufferings,  not  of  body,  but  of  mind. 
Yes,  my  dear  sister,  I  was  a  drunkard  ;  "  and  no  drunkard,"  it 
is  said,  in  the  sacred  volume,  "  shall  inherit  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  But  why  dwell  so  long  on  the  dark  side  of  the  picture  ? 
Has  not  our  heavenly  Father  promised  life  and  salvation  to  the 
returning  prodigal  ?  Yes,  my  very  soul  has  realized  this  prom- 
ise and  I  am  now  happy,  happy  in  my  family ;  and  you,  with 
mother,  brothers,  sisters,  all  rejoice,  that  I  (by  the  mercy  of  God) 
have  been  plucked  "  as  a  brand  from  the  burning,"  "  and  my 
feet  placed  on  a  rock,"  u  with  a  new  song  in  my  mouth,"  even 
praise  unto  Him  who  "  hath  redeemed  us  with  his  most  precious 
blood." 

It  will  give  you  all  great  pleasure  to  hear  that  on  Wednes- 
day last  I  sent  Elizabeth  and  Hannah  to  join  William  George 
at  Wilbraham  Academy,  the  girls  to  remain  at  least  one  year, 
if  not  more.  And  furthermore,  I  have  made  up  my  mind  with 
William's  consent,  to  fit  him  for  college ;  if  he  lives  he  will 
make  a  professional  man  ;  this  is  all  I  can  do  for  them.  You 
will  see  they  are  all  placed  at  the  same  school ;  the  girls  are 
under  the  immediate  protection  of  their  brother,  and,  what  is 
!>«  si  of  all,  they  are  seeking  the  salvation  of  their  souls.  Eliza- 
beth is  awake,  Hannah  is  awake,  and  William  George  is  wide 
awake.  What  a  satisfaction  this  is  to  me,  and  how  much  grat- 
ification it  must  be  to  mother,  and  to  you  all. 


236  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Now  the  fact  is,  you  and  mother  must  come  on  here  and 
make  us  a  visit.  Let  the  boys  "  club  together,"  ancl  send  or 
bring  you  on,  and  I  will  take  care  of  you  while  you  are  here  ; 
and  it  will  do  my  heart  good  to  meet  and  introduce  you  to  some 
of  my  friends  ;  and  when  you  want  to  go  home  I  will  furnish 
you  with  the  means  to  take  you  there  ;  so  the  boys  shall  not 
bear  all  the  burden  of  your  expenses.  Come !  Write  me 
about  this  immediately,  and  make  a  long  story  short. 

My  wife,  with  Arthur  and  Sallie,  have  taken  their  summer 
residence  in  Worcester,  Mass.,  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and 
healthy  villages  in  the  Union.  She  has  gained  two  pounds 
since  the  4th ;  her  health  is  fast  improving ;  the  children  are 
well.  I  want  you  to  write  me  immediately  (as  I  said  before), 
and  let  me  know  how  you  all  are,  especially  whether  Uncle 
Harry  keeps  his  pledge.  Send  my  respects  to  John  Zug  by 
Samuel  Martin,  and  tell  him  I  should  like  to  have  him  send  me 
one  of  the  books  he  has  published  in  reference  to  the  Wash- 
ington Temperance  Society. 

I  spent  the  4th  in  New- York  city  by  special  invitation,  and 
had  it  not  been  for  the  many  appointments  and  engagements 
which  constantly  occupied  my  time,  I  would  have  come  to 
Baltimore,  but  shall  now  wait  patiently  an  answer  saying 
when  you  and  mother  will  come,  for  now  is  the  season  for  a 
visit  to  this  part  of  the  country.  I  shall  cease  my  labors  for  a 
time  to  rest  and  enjoy  your  society  ;  nothing  will  be  spared  to 
make  your  visit  agreeable. 

We  all  join  in  love  to  you  all.  Direct  your  answer  to 
Boston  ;  write  so  as  I  can  get  it  by  the  3d  of  August.  I  shall 
be  in  the  city  at  that  time.  I  want  you  to  write  a  long  letter 
to  Elizabeth  and  Hannah,  to  Wilbraham. 

Your  brother,  affectionately,         JOHN  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Returning  to  "Worcester  for  a  rest  of  two  days,  he 
wrote  the  following  letter  to  his  children,  then  at  the 
Wilbraham  Academy:  — 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  237 

WORCESTER,  July  19,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SON  AND  DAUGHTERS,  —  I  arrived  here  on 
Monday  from  a  tour  of  duty  in  Plymouth  County,  and  to-day 
and  to-morrow  (Wednesday  and  Thursday),  I  lecture  in 
Groton  ;  Friday  in  Shirley.  Saturday  in  Leominster,  Sunday 
in  Stirling,  Monday  in  West  Boylston,  Tuesday  in  Charlton. 
Thursday  I  go  again  to  Plymouth  County,  commencing  at  Mid- 
dleborough  Four  Corners,  where  I  shall  labor  till  the  third  of 
August ;  then  I  think  I  shall  go  to  New  Hampshire.  Your 
mother  and  Sallie  are  going  with  me  to  Groton  ;  Arthur  will 
board  with  Mrs.  Congden  while  we  are  away.  In  the  mean 
time  she  (your  mother)  will  visit  Boston ;  had  I  time  I  should 
have  come  up  to  see  you. 

My  object  in  writing  to  you  is  to  let  you  know  that  I  will 
return  to  Worcester  from  Stirling  on  Monday  or  Tuesday  next, 
on  my  way  to  Charlton.  I  therefore  wish  you  to  write  to  me ; . 
direct  to  Worcester,  letting  me  know  how  your  sisters  are 
situated,  and  how  they  like  the  place ;  also  what  books  are 
wanted,  etc.,  etc. 

I  intend  your  mother  shall  make  you  a  visit  shortly,  and 
stay  one  week  at  least ;  we  will  write  when  she  will  come  in 
time  for  you  to  engage  a  place  for  her  and  Sallie. 

My  dear  son,  your  sisters  are  under  your  immediate  care  ; 
watch  over  them  affectionately  ;  love  each  other,  and  compare 
the  past  with  the  present.  Remember  what  I  once  was,  and 
let  us  join  in  prayer  and  praise  to  our  heavenly  Father  for 
what  he  has  done  for  your  poor  father,  by  which  I  have  been 
able  to  do  for  you  what  I  could  not  otherwise  have  done.  My 
dear  Elizabeth,  remember  you  have  a  soul ;  pray  to  God  to 
convert  you  and  fill  your  heart  with  pure  and  undefiled  religion. 
My  dear  daughter  Hannah,  you  have  commenced  early  in  life 
to  seek  the  Lord,  which  gives  me  inexpressible  joy ;  never  look 
back  until  you  have  found  full  redemption  in  the  blood  of  your 
heavenly  Redeemer. 

My  dear  son,  what  shall  I  say  to  you  ?     Give  your  heart 


238  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

entirely  to  God  ;  watch  and  pray  constantly,  relying  on  God  ; 
it  may  be  he  will  lead  you  to  turn  sinners  to  repentance. 

You  know  that  Hannah  is  not  as  far  advanced  as  your  sister, 
and  that  she  has  not  as  much  confidence  ;  it  will  require  you 
and  your  sister's  affectionate  attention  in  affording  her  all  the 
instruction  you  can  without  a  jar.  Give  my  compliments  to 
your  teacher,  requesting  his  or  her  special  attention  to  her. 
We  are  about  to  leave  in  the  stage,  so  I  must  close  with  my 
love  to  you  all.  Your  father, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


CHAPTER     XVI. 

"  Have  ye  heard  of  our  triumph,  that  far  o'er  the  nation 

Is  sending  its  echoes  so  deeply  and  clear  ? 
Have  ye  seen  our  bright  flag  with  its  beams  of  salvation 

The  rainbow  of  promise  that  lighted  us  here  ? 
Have  ye  heard  that  the  bands  of  the  tyrant  are  broken, 

That  link  after  link  hath  been  rent  from  his  chain  ? 
That  the  conquest  is  gained,  and  the  word  hath  been  spoken 

That  gives  us  the  gladness  of  freedom  again  ?  " 

AFTER  meeting  and  lecturing  to  large  audiences  in 
the  towns  referred  to  in  the  letter  which  closed  the  last 
chapter,  Mr.  Hawkins  passed  on  to  Halifax,  in  which 
town,  he  remarks,  all  the  liquors  have  been  burned, 
and  the  traffic  suppressed.  He  found  great  interest  in 
the  cause  and  much  enthusiasm  prevailing  in  Bridge- 
water,  East  Bridgewater,  North  and  South  Bridgewa- 
ter,  Weymouth,  and  Quincy.  "  This  town,"  he  re- 
marks in  his  journal,  "  is  wide  awake ;  but  there  is  still 
one  rum-tavern ;  but  they  are  determined  to  drive  rum 
from  the  town." 

He  was  well  received  in  Dover,  Mass.,  and  from 
1  hence  passing  into  New  Hampshire,  he  lectured  in  New 
Ipswich,  Fitzwilliam,  Hancock,  Mason  Village,  and 
Amherst.  In  Manchester  he  spent  four  days,  lecturing 
io  very  large  audiences;  here  he  found  the  cause  in  a 
most  flourishing  condition.  His  former  visit  was  re- 
membered with  pleasure.  August  18th  he  closed  his 
tour  by  a  lecture  in  Hollis,  to  an  attentive  and  delighted 
audience.  On  the  19th  of  August  he  returned  to  Bos- 
ton ;  we  quote  from  his  journal :  — 


240  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Went  this  day  to  Eastham  camp-meeting,  and  remained  until 
its  meetings  broke  up.  The  number  of  persons  who  went  down 
from  Boston  by  steamboat,  and  returned,  were  as  follow.-; :  — 

Number  that  went  down,  adults, 1031 

"      children, 50 

Total, I 1081 

Number  that  returned,  adults, 1 108 

"          "         "  children, 60 

Total, 1168 

Numbers  also  proceeded  by  land ;  to  these  were  added 
the  multitudes  who  poured  in  from  the  adjoining  towns. 
Here  the  cause  of  temperance  received  large  acces- 
sions. The  addresses  of  Mr.  Hawkins  were  frequently 
spoken  of  by  the  press  as  able  and  happy  efforts. 

The  number  who  signed,  during  the  continuance  of 
the  religious  services,  are  noticed  in  Mr.  Hawkins'  jour- 
nal. Number  of  pledges,  1200 ;  also  of  ministers,  72 ; 
total,  1272. 

It  was  at  this  camp-meeting  that  Mr.  Hawkins  was 
reminded  of  an  incident  which  occurred  in  Maine 
while  he  was  on  a  tour  in  that  State  several  months 
previous.  It  is  characteristic  of  his  peculiar  mode 
of  approaching  the  most  hopeless  cases;  it  is  thus 
related  by  the  New-  York  Organ :  — 

At  a  recent  temperance  meeting  Mr.  John  Hawkins  related 
the  following  circumstances  which  occurred  some  months  since 
in  Brunswick,  State  of  Maine,  where  he  went  by  invitation  to 
deliver  an  address.  On  arriving  there  an  individual  informed 
him  that  there  was  one  of  the  most  desperate  cases  at  a  tan- 
yard  in  the  vicinity,  and  expressed  a  conviction  that  it  would 
be  useless  to  attempt  to  save  him ;  however,  they  decided  to 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  241 

make  the  attempt,  and  started  for  the  tanyard.  On  their  way 
they  fell  in  with  several  gentlemen,  who,  on  learning  their 
errand,  resolved  to  accompany  them  on  their  mission  of  love. 

Ex-Governor  Dunlap,  Dr. ,  and  others,  who  rank  high 

among  their  fellow-men,  were  of  the  party,  "following,"  as  Mr. 
Hawkins  forcibly  observed,  "  the  reformed  drunkard,  to  save 
.  the  sunken  and  hopeless  inebriate."  The  person  they  sought, 
whose  name  was  Walker,  was  a  man  of  gigantic  stature,  raw- 
boned  and  muscular,  but  fearfully  had  he  fallen.  As  some  one 
of  the  company  made  known  their  object  in  visiting  him,  Mr. 
Hawkins  observed  the  neck  of  a  bottle  protruding  from  his 
pantaloons  pocket.  Walker  saw  the  glance,  and  ere  a  word 
had  been  spoken  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  apologized  to  him  with, 
"  Indeed,  sir,  I  cannot  do  without  it." 

The  conversation  now  became  general,  and  expostulation  and 
argument  for  awhile  seemed  powerless.  Turning  to  the  doc- 
tor, Walker  observed  to  him,  "  Sir,  you  know  I  cannot  reform. 
Don't  you  remember  the  calculation  we  made  some  time  ago, 
that  I  had  averaged  one  quart  of  liquor  per  day  since  my  birth, 
forty-two  years  ago ;  and  do  you  now  think  I  could  stop  drink- 
ing ?  " 

After  considerable  parleying,  lie  promised  to  attend  the  meet- 
ing that  night ;  and  then  he  took  the  bottle  from  his  pocket, 
and  digging  a  hole  in  a  heap  of  tan,  there  buried  it,  saying, 
"  Lay  there ;  I'll  not  take  any  more  till  to-morrow,  anyhow." 
Then  turning  to  those  who  surrounded  him,  "  Oh,"  said  he, 
"  when  the  horrors  come  upon  me  (as  I  know  they  will  if  I 
leave  off),  will  you  stand  by  me,  will  you  help  me  ?  I  will  tell 
you  what  I  want  you  to  do  ;  get  a  chain  and  a  staple,  drive  the 
staple  into  the  floor  of  the  tanhouse,  and  secure  the  chain 
around  my  body,  and  then  keep  by  me.  Will  you  promise  me 
this  ?  "  The  sympathizing  gentlemen  assured  him  they  would 
do  all  in  their  power,  if  he  would  come  to  the  meeting  that 
night  and  sign  the  pledge,  and  left  him  with  a  faint  hope  of 
effecting  his  salvation.  Night  came ;  Mr.  Hawkins  went  to  the 
21 


242  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

church,  and  almost  the  first  one  he  saw  was  poor  Walker;  in 
a  front  seat,  apparently  all  eye  and  ear. 

To  use  Mr.  Hawkins'  own  words,  "  When  I  began  to  talk 
into  him,  and  at  last  the  tears  began  to  flow,  then  I  felt  sure 
of  him !  I  gave  the  invitation  for  those  who  wished  to  sign  to 
come  forward.  Walker  rose,  stepped  out  into  the  broad  aisle, 
came  up  to  the  table,  and  grasping  the  pen,  leaned  forward  to 
affix  his  name,  when  suddenly  he  dropped  the  pen,  lifted  both 
hands  above  his  head,  clasped  them,  and  thus  stood  the  image 
of  despair,  as  he  exclaimed,  "  I  can't  write  my  name !  I  can't 
write  my  name ! "  A  thrill  ran  through  the  assembly,  while 
the  wretched  man  seemed  losing  the  faint  ray  of  hope,  and 
yielding  himself  to  dark,  remediless  despair.  Mr.  Hawkins 
seized  the  pen,  and  checking  his  despondency,  reminded  him 
that  another  could  write  his  name  and  he  affix  his  cross  thereto, 
and  it  would  be  as  binding  as  though  entirely  his  own  writing. 
Again  Walker  stooped,  and  made  a  broad  black  cross  in  the 
place  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  who  had  written  his  name, 
and  then  with  a  glad,  triumphant  glance  at  his  handi-work,  took 
his  seat. 

The  next  morning  Mr.  Hawkins  took  his  departure,  and  for 
a  few  months  heard  nothing  more  about  his  protege  ;  but  a  few 
weeks  ago,  at  a  camp-meeting,  a  Methodist  minister  informed 
him  that  there  was  to  be  a  temperance  meeting  in  Brunswick 
the  next  Sabbath,  and  Walker  was  to  relate  his  experience. 

In  his  journal,  under  date  of  August  24,  we  find  the 
following :  — 

Attended  a  large  picnic  at  Norton,  Mass.  The  supposed 
number  in  attendance  was  over  three  thousand  ;  it  was  a  glori- 
ous time ;  speakers  present  were  Rev.  John  Pierpont,  Dr. 
Charles  Jewett,  Mr.  Woodman,  &c. 

Mr.  Hawkins  spent  a  part  of  the  week  succeeding 
the  above  meeting  in  various  parts  of  Rhode  Island,  lee- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


243 


turing  several  times  in  Bristol.  He  found  the  cause  in 
a  state  of  depression,  "  in  consequence,"  as  he  remarks, 
"of  the  political  difficulties  from  which  the  people 
were  at  this  time  suffering." 

On  returning,  he  addressed  a  meeting  of  children  on 
« the  Green  "  at  Taunton,  giving  two  evenings  to  the 
people.  He  addressed  a  crowded  house  next  day, 
August  31,  in  Foxboro,  Mass. 

September  1st.  —  Attended  a  picnic  in  Brookline  —  a  delight- 
ful time. 

We  append  in  a  note  an  interesting  account  of  this 
picnic,  by  one  who  was  present,  which  we  find  in  the 
Mercantile  Journal  * 

*  THE  PICNIC  AT  BROOKLINE.  —  The  Ladies'  Grand  Picnic,  and 
Wasliir.gtonian  and  Cold  Water  Army  Celebration,  at  Brookline,  yes- 
terday, was  one  of  the  most  delightful  celebrations  of  the  kind  which 
has  ever  taken  place.  The  day  was  beautiful,  the  place  very  happily 
chosen,  and  all  the  arrangements  were  made  and  carried  out  in  the  most 
perfect  manner.  About  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  the  procession, 
headed  by  the  Brigade  Band,  was  formed  at  the  Baptist  meeting-house, 
under  the  direction  of  Samuel  A.  Walker,  Chief  Marshal,  and  took  up 
its  line  of  march  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Picrce's  church,  about  half  a  mile  dis- 
tant, which  was  very  tastefully  decorated  with  temperance  banners, 
bearing  appropriate  devices  and  mottoes.  At  the  church,  the  exercises 
were  opened  by  the  song,  "  Come  ye  children,  learn  to  sing,"  sung  by 
the  Cold  Water  Army,  a  numerous  body  of  children  of  both  sexes. 
This  was  followed  by  prayer,  and  then  the  song,  "  If  for  pleasure,  health 
or  treasure,"  was  sung.  Next  followed  addresses  by  the  Rev.  E.  Thomp- 
son of  Dedham,  E.  K.  Whittaker,  of  Needham,  Daniel  Kimball,  of  Ips- 
wich, John  Hawkins,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Shaler,  of  Brookline.  The  ad- 
dresses were  all  short,  and  pertinent  to  the  occasion,  and  some  of  them 
were  eloquent  and  impressive.  Mr.  Hawkins  spoke  with  even  more  than 
liis  usual  effect,  and  brought  tears  to  mnny  eyes  by  the  force  and  beauty 
of  his  descriptions.  The  procession  was  again  formed,  and  marched  to 
the  place  where  the  dinner  was  to  take  place  —  a  beautiful  grove  about  a 


244  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

On  the  2d  day  of  September  Mr.  Hawkins  returned 
again  to  New  Hampshire,  and  visited  a  number  of 
towns  where  he  had  not  been,  including  a  few  where 
societies  had  already  been  formed. 

The  attendance  on  his  lectures  was  large  and  the 
interest  unabated.  From  Keene  he  wrote  the  following 
letter  to  his  son  :  — 

KEENE,  N.  H.,  Sept.  8th,  1842. 

MY  DKAII  SON,  —  I  have  just  time  to  write  a  few  lines  to 
you  and  your  sisters,  to  inform  you  my  health  is  very  good. 
I  hope  you  and  your  sisters  are  in  good  health,  and  in  the  en- 
joyment of  much  of  the  love  of  God.  What  pleasure  it  gives 
me  to  know  you  are  all  together,  at  so  good  a  school,  and  try- 
ing to  serve  God  and  save  your  immortal  souls.  O  my  dear 
children,  pray  for  your  poor  father ;  remember  the  pit  from 
which  God  in  his  mercy  has  raised  me.  Rejoice  in  God,  for 
he  has  become  our  salvation  and  our  song.  I  want  to  see  you 
all  very  much. 

By  a  paper  I  send  you,  you  will  see  my  appointments,  which 
will  end  on  the  22d  inst.  I  shall  be  in  Boston  on  the  23d,  in 
Worcester  on  the  24th,  and,  if  I  can,  I  will  try  and  pay  you  a 
visit  on  the  25th. 

Your  mother  is  to  spend  a  week  with  you  before  we  go  to 
Baltimore.  I  want  to  be  there  on  the  28th  September,  which 
is.  my  forty-fifth  birthday.  Your  mother  will  return  to  Wor- 
cester on  or  about  the  15th  inst.,  to  prepare  herself  for  the 
intended  visit.  I  wish  you  to  write  immediately ;  direct  your 
letter  to  Milford,  N.  H.  I  shall  be  there  Saturday  and  Sun- 
mile  from  the  church.  Speeches,  songs  and  sentiments  followed,  with 
such  rapidity  and  in  such  profusion  that  we  have  not  space  to  report 
them,  and  arc  compelled  to  give  but  two,  as  a  specimen  of  the  rest. 
John  Hawkins  gave,  "  The  temperance  cause;  may  nothing  impede  its 
ultimate  triumph;"  by  another,  "  Cider;  the  nest-e<j>j  of  intemperance." 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  245 

d;iy,  17th  and  18th.     I  feel  anxious  to  hear  from  yon;   don't 
i'ail  to  write.     Love  to  mother  and  sisters. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

His  visit  to  Baltimore  was  a  delightful  one  ;  meeting 
there  many  relatives  who  loved  him,  and  that  aged 
mother  whose  prayers  had  never  been  intermitted  for 
her  son's  return  to  the  paths  of  virtue  and  religion. 
The  reunion  on  that  forty-fifth  birthday,  September 
28th,  1842,  where  parents,  brothers,  sisters,  nephews, 
and  nieces,  interchanged  their  thoughts  and  feelings, 
filled  his  heart  with  gratitude  and  joy.  Nor  did  he  for- 
get his  brethren  in  the  cause  of  temperance ;  he  visited 
their  meetings  night  after  night,  and  encouraged  them 
in  their  progress. 

That  veteran  in  the  good  cause,  Christian  Keener, 
of  Baltimore,  thus  writes  in  the  Herald,  referring  to 
Mr.  Hawkins'  visit :  — 

John  Hawkins,  the  famous  Apostle  of  Temperance,  is  among 
us  again,  receiving  hearty  welcome  wherever  he  goes,  and  im- 
parting power  to  every  society  he  addresses. 

Mr.  Hawkins  left  Baltimore  on  the  llth  of  October, 
and  reached  New  York  in  time  for  "  The  Croton  Jubi- 
lee," which  took  place  on  the  14th.  It  was  an  occasion 
of  great  rejoicing.  The  day  was  ushered  in  by  the 
firing  of  one  hundred  guns.  At  ten  o'clock  precisely, 
the  procession  began  to  move  from  the  Battery ;  be- 
tween twelve  and  fifteen  thousand  men  marched  in  its 
ranks ;  the  procession  extended  seven  miles.  The  most 
striking  fact  in  this  celebration  was  its  temperance 
character,  the  procession  being  in  a  large  measure  corn- 

21* 


246  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

posed  of  teetotalers.  Many  temperance  men  marched 
in  the  ranks  of  the  military  and  fire  companies.  Be- 
tween two  and  three  hundred  thousand  people  were 
abroad  on  that  day  fraught  with  so  many  blessings  to 
the  city.  And  yet,  in  this  vast  multitude,  scarce  a 
drunken  man  was  to  be  found  ;  but  few  arrests  were 
maae,  and  "  during  the  ensuing  night,"  says  Dr.  Marsh, 
"  none  were  committed  for  drunkenness."  In  the  address 
made  by  Samuel  Stevens,  Esq.,  in  behalf  of  the  Board 
of  Water  Commissioners,  a  highly  complimentary  al- 
lusion was  made  to  the  beneficial  effects  of  the  temper- 
ance reformation  upon  the  city,  its  internal  quiet,  and 
greater  domestic  enjoyment. 

The  following  lines  composed  by  George  P.  Morris, 
Esq.,  were  sung  at  the  Park  fountain.  Their  appropri- 
ateness, their  classic  beauty  and  taste,  and  the  exqui- 
site fancy  which  flows  along  almost  every  line,  render 
them  worthy  of  preservation.  While  more  ancient  as 
well  as  more  modern  poets  have  thought  it  worth  their 
while  to  sing  the  praises  of  the  sparkling  wine,  it  is  re- 
freshing to  recur  to  what  was  said  of  cold  water  in 
October,  1842,  when  rushing  up  from  the  fountain's 
depth,  it  flashed  in  sight  of  the  good  people  of  New 
York,  on  that  memorable  day :  — 

Gushing  from  this  living  fountain 

Music  pours  a  falling  strain, 
As  the  goddess  of  the  mountain 

Comes  with  all  her  sparkling  train. 
From  her  grotto-springs  advancing, 

Glittering  in  her  feathery  spray, 
Woodland  fays  beside  her  dancing, 

She  pursues  her  winding  way. 

Gently  o'er  the  rippling  water, 
In  her  coral-shallop  bright, 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   E.   W.    HAWKINS.  2-17 

Glides  the  rock-king's  dove-eyed  daughter 

Decked  in  robes  of  virgin  white. 
Nymphs  and  Naiads,  sweetly  smiling, 

Urge  her  bark  with  pearly  hand, 
Merrily  the  sylph  beguiling, 

From  the  nooks  of  fairy  land. 

Swimming  on  the  snow-curled  billow, 

See  the  river-spirits  fair, 
Lay  their  cheeks,  as  on  a  pillow, 

With  the  foam-beads  in  their  hair. 
Thus  attended,  hither  wending, 

Floats  the  lovely  Oread  now, 
Eden's  arch  of  promise  bending 

Over  her  translucent  brow. 

Hail  the  wanderer  from  a  far -land ! 

Bind  her  flowing  tresses  up  ! 
Crown  her  with  a  fadeless  garland, 

And  with  crystal  brim  the  cup. 
From  her  haunts  of  deep  seclusion, 

Let  Intemperance  greet  her  too, 
And  the  heat  of  his  delusion 

Sprinkle  with  this  mountain-dew. 

Water  leaps  as  if  delighted, 

While  her  conquered  foes  retire ! 
Palo  Contagion  flies  affrighted 

With  the  baffled  demon,  Fire ! 
Safety  dwells  in  her  dominions, 

Health  and  Beauty  with  her  move, 
And  entwine  their  circling  pinions 

In  a  sisterhood  of  love. 

Water  shouts  a  glad  hosanna ! 

Bubbles  up  the  earth  to  bless ! 
Cheers  it  like  the  precious  manna, 

In  the  barren  wilderness. 
Here  we  wondering  gaze,  assembled 

Like  the  grateful  Hebrew  band, 
When  the  hidden  fountain  trembled, 

And  obeyed  rhe  prophet's  wand. 


248  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Round  the  aqueducts  of  story, 

As  the  mists  of  Lethe  throng, 
Croton's  waves,  in  all  their  glory, 

Troop  in  melody  along. 
Ever  sparkling,  bright  and  single, 

Will  this  rock-ribbed  stream  appear, 
When  posterity  shall  mingle, 

Like  the  gathered  waters  here. 

Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to  Boston  on  the  19th  of  Oc- 
tober, and  passed  the  remainder  of  the  month  in  New 
Hampshire,  visiting  and  lecturing  in  fifteen  towns  with 
great  success.  November  4th,  5th,  6th,  and  7th,  he 
spent  in  Nantucket.  This  visit  is  spoken  of  in  the 
papers  of  the  day  as  a  highly  successful  one ;  many 
reformations  were  effected,  and  temperance  men  were 
much  encouraged. 

After  visiting  several  other  towns  he  returned  to 
Boston,  from  which  place  he  wrote  the  following  letter 
to  his  children :  — 

BOSTON,  Nov.  17,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SON  AND  DAUGHTERS,  —  Since  I  saw  you  I 
have  been  lecturing  most  of  the  time  in  New  Hampshire. 
I  am  now  here  attending  a  protracted  temperance  meeting  now 
being  held  in  Faneuil  Hall ;  it  commenced  last  night  and  will 
continue  during  the  week.  It  is  a  union  of  all  temperance 
men  to  take  into  consideration  the  alarming  increase  of  grog- 
shops in  this  city,  and  to  prosecute  indiscriminately  all  who  sell 
without  license  ;  and  there  is  not  one  licensed  seller  in  the  city. 
I  will  send  you  the  papers  containing  the  proceedings  when 
published.  I  have  not  heard  from  Baltimore  since  I  left.  I 
received  your  letter  dated  13th,  and  was  glad  to  hear  you  were 
well.  I  feel  a  great  anxiety  about  you  and  your  sisters.  Do 
you  pray  often  and  in  secret  ?  Do  you  read  your  Bible  on 
your  knees  with  prayer?  Do  you  watch  your  thoughts  and 
words  ?  0  my  dear  children,  how  thankful  we  all  should  be, 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  249 

especially  that  our  situation  in  life  has  been  so  changed,  and 
above  all  that  I  am  no  longer  a  drunkard,  but  able  to  educate 
and  provide  for  my  dear  children,  and  striving  to  do  all  in  my 
power  to  bring  the  poor  drunkard  into  paths  of  sobriety,  and 
point  him  to  the  "  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world."  My  dear  children,  pray  for  us  that  God  may  keep  us 
by  his  power. 

I  expect  soon  to  have  some  appointments  in  your  part  of  the 
country,  and  shall  call  and  spend  a  day  or  two  with  you. 
send,  enclosed  in  this,  thirty  dollars,  to  pay  your  expenses.  I 
was  much  pleased  to  hear  you  had  so  pleasant  a  time  in 
Middletown.  But  I  must  close  for  want  of  time.  Write  me  a 
letter,  a  full  one,  how  your  sisters  and  yourself  are  progressing ; 
be  particular;  I  want  to  know  especially  about  Hannah.  Mail 
your  letter  on  the  25th.  I  shall  be  in  Boston  the  next  day. 

In  your  answer  to  this  let  me  know  what  will  be  the  entire 
amount  of  your  bill,  board,  tuition,  etc.,  etc.,  to  the  end  of  the 
term,  and  when  this  term  will  end. 

I  remain,  my  dear  children, 

Your  father,  very  affectionately, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  the  16th,  17th,  and  18th  of  November,  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins attended  several  extraordinary  meetings  of  the 
citizens  of  Boston,  held  in  Faneuil  Hall,  for  the  purpose 
of  devising  measures  to  check  the  alarming  increase  of 
dram-shops  in  the  city.  The  debates  were  animating, 
and  exerted  an  exceedingly  beneficial  influence  upon 
the  citizens.  Temperance  men  of  the  old  and  the  new 
schools  united  harmoniously;  John  Tappan,  Moses 
Grant,  Dr.  Walter  Channing,  John  Hawkins,  Rev.  J. 
Pierpont,  and  many  others,  moving  shoulder  to  shoulder 
in  the  great  enterprise. 

The  remainder  of  the  year  was  spent  by  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins in  visiting  a  large  number  of  towns  in  Massachu- 


250  LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

setts.     His  visit  to  Hampshire  is  thus  spoken  of  by  the 
editor  of  the  Hampshire  Washingtonian :  — 

This  indefatigable  lecturer  lias  been  visiting  the  towns  in 
this  county.  We  have  visited  many  of  these  towns  since  his 
lectures,  and  the  universal  approbation  of  the  people  is  not  only 
given,  but  they  ask  when  can  we  have  him  again  ?  This  is 
truly  gratifying  to  the  Washingtonians,  and  serves  to  induce 
them  to  renewed  exertions  and  to  hold  them  more  firmly 
together.  Mr.  Hawkins  will  do  much  in  dispelling  the  fears 
of  the  timid  in  relation  to  the  partisan  purposes  into  which 
this  great  and  good  cause  was  thought  to  be  merged,  and  enlist 
thousands  in  its  favor  who  have  as  yet  taken  "  no  part  or  lot  in 
the  matter." 

He  speaks  in  his  journal  of  addressing  large  meet- 
ings in  Northampton,  Montague,  Sunderland,  Hadley, 
Amherst,  South  Hadley,  East  Hampton,  Williamsburg, 
Whately,  and  Greenfield.  From  East  Hampton  he 
wrote  to  his  children  as  follows :  — 

EAST  HAMPTON,  Dec.  27,  1842. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  have  just  a  moment  to  spare  to  inform 
you  that  I  have  written  to  your  mother  to  send  Arthur  up  to 
"Wilbraham.  He  is  to  take  the  seven  o'clock  train  of  cars  on 
the  fourteenth  day  of  January,  which  will  be  Saturday ;  you 
will  therefore  be  at  the  depot  to  receive  him.  This  will  not 
interfere  with  your  going  to  West  Boylston  on  the  eighteenth 
as  contemplated.  He  can  be  with  your  sisters,  who  I  know 
will  treat  him  kindly ;  remember  he  is  a  poor  little  orphan, 
depending  on  me  as  a  father  and  protector.  I  have  all  confi- 
dence in  placing  him  under  the  care  of  you  and  your  sisters. 

Yesterday  I  was  at  South  Hadley,  and  lectured  to  a  crowded 
audience ;  this  you  know  is  the  location  of  the  far-famed  Mt. 
Holyoke  Seminary  for  young  ladies,  many  of  whom  attended 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  251 

my  lecture.  In  the  afternoon  I  spent  several  hours  at  the 
institution,  going  through  it  and  being  introduced  to  the  teachers 
and  students.  I  was  accompanied  by  the  President,  Rev.  Mr. 
Hawks,  and  the  Principal,  Miss  Lyon.  I  never  saw  an  insti- 
tution equal  to  it  in  all  my  travels  ;  it  is  the  most  complete  in 
all  its  arrangements  of  any  in  this  country.  It  has,  in  a 
measure,  been  misrepresented  in  regard  to  the  domestic  labor 
imposed  upon  its  students.  I  am  decidedly  in  favor  of  it,  as 
being  wise  and  healthy.  I  intend  that  you  afcd  your  sisters 
with  me  shall  pay  the  institution  a  visit  before  I  return  to 
Boston. 

Mr.  Hawks,  the  President,  intends,  by  my  request,  to  write 
to  you  for  the  purpose  of  advising  and  giving  you  some  good 
instruction  in  regard  to  your  future  prospects.  I  told  him  that 
your  mind  was  directed  to  the  study  of  the  ministry ;  he  was 
very  much  pleased.  In  conversation  with  him,  he  said  he 
would  advise  me  to  put  you,  at  the  proper  time,  with  some 
worthy,  pious  clergyman,  to  receive  of  him  private  instruction 
in  his  family ;  this  will  be  a  matter  for  conversation  when  we 
meet. 

My  dear  son  and  daughters,  you  cannot  imagine  the  anxiety 
I  feel  for  you  in  regard  to  your  education,  as  well  as  in  other 
matters.  Be  diligent !  Love  each  other !  Tell  Elizabeth  and 
Hannah  to  love  each  other,  and  endeavor  to  make  each  other 
happy.  I  shall  probably  be  in  Wilbraham  about  the  last  of 
January. 

My  dear  children,  give  your  whole  soul  to  God  in  prayer  ; 
he  has  done  much  for  me,  whereof  we  have  cause  to  be  glad. 
Pray  for  me  ;  and  that  God  may  of  his  infinite  goodness  and 
mercy  bless  and  keep  you  by  his  power,  unto  everlasting  life, 
is  the  prayer  of  your  dear  father, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

During  the  early  part  of  January,  1843,  we  find  Mr. 
Hawkins  in  Boston,  delivering  addresses  several  even- 


252  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ings  during  the  week,  and  visiting  the  intemperate  and 
the  recently  reformed  during  the  day.  Sunday,  Janu- 
ary 15th,  he  lectured  in  the  Bethel  in  North  Square  ; 
the  daily  papers  spoke  of  the  audience  as  being  "  large 
and  highly  respectable."  "  The  audience  seemed  grat- 
ified to  welcome  that  long-tried  friend  of  the  drunkard, 
and  able  lecturer  on  the  cause  of  temperance,  J.  H.  W. 
Hawkins.  He  enchained  the  attention  while  describing 
the  magic  transformations  which  the  pledge^  under 
God,  had  effected."  On  the  15th  he  departed  on  a 
tour  of  lecturing  through  a  part  of  Worcester  County 
We  make  the  following  extract  from  his  journal :  — 

I  lectured  in  Gardner,  Monday,  January  1C  ;  crowded  house; 
the  people  seem  to  be  awake  to  the  subject,  and  have  done 
much  to  advance  the  cause.  There  is  a  Temperance  House  in 
this  place ;  it  was  formerly  a  dram-shop,  kept  by  a  CLERGY- 
MAN. My  next  visit  was  to  Hubbardston  (17th).  The 
cause  has  progressed  here  rapidly,  notwithstanding  the  oppo- 
sition ;  they  are  cursed  with  two  rum-taverns  and  two  rum- 
stores  ;  their  time,  however,  is  short.  They  are,  however, 
blessed  with  a  fine  set  of  young  men.  It  is  said  that  there  is 
not  a  young  man  in  the  town  who  has  any  pretension  to  respec- 
tability, that  drinks  a  drop  of  intoxicating  liquor ;  and,  much 
to  their  credit,  th"v  have  formed  themselves  into  a  company, 
not  exactly  a  military  company,  called  the  Hubbardston 
Waslu'ngtonian  Guards.  No  young  gentleman  can  be  admit- 
ted into  the  company  without  first  signing  the  pledge.  In  the 
fall  they  visited  Fitchburg,  at  a  military  parade,  and  did  them- 
selves much  credit.  They  are  commanded  by  Charles  O.  Bar- 
rows, Esq.,  a  fine-looking  young  man,  and  as  fair  a  specimen 
of  a  cold  water  man  as  I  ever  looked  upon.  Their  uniform 
consists  of  a  plain  blue  coat,  white  pants,  with  a  dark  stripe 
down  the  side,  blue  sash,  cap  with  gold  lace ;  their  arms  a 
wooden  spear  ;  their  number  is  forty-five,  and  increasing.  They 


LIFE   OP    JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  253 

did  me  the  honor  of  escorting  me  to  the  church,  taking  their 
seats  in  the  body  of  the  house.  My  next  visit,  Wednesday, 
was  to  Templeton ;  the  meeting  was  not  attended  as  well  as  I 
had  expected,  owing  no  doubt  to  a  Miller  meeting  held  in  the 
Town  Hall  the  same  evening.  There,  also,  much  has  been 
done,  notwithstanding  much  opposition.  The  landlord  had 
better  sign  the  pledge  and  save  himself.  They  are  cursed  here 
with  rum  in  three  taverns  and  one  store.  These  are  approbated 
by  a  selectman,  a  deacon  of  a  church,  whose  character  as  a 
man  and  a  Christian  is  unblemished,  notwithstanding  he  was 
put  into  office  last  spring,  since  this  great  reform  commenced, 
and  therefore  could  not  be  blind  to  the  " sinning  effects'''  Oh  ! 
how  long  will  the  people  suffer  these  pitfalls  to  be  left  uncov- 
ered for  their  children  and  the  poor  drunkard  to  fall  into  ?  The 
reformation  of  the  drunkard,  the  past  and  present  condition  of 
his  family,  imperatively  demand  that  they  be  closed  up,  and 
that  immediately.  The  inmates  of  our  almshouses  and  houses 
of  correction,  and  more  beseechingly  do  the  inmates  of  our 
States  prisons,  call  upon  the  powers  that  be,  to  pity  their  con- 
dition, and  to  remove  the  temptation  out  of  their  way,  that 
when  they  come  again  into  the  world  they  may  be  able  to 
stand.  "  He  that  knoweth  my  will  and  doeth  it  not,  shall  be 
beaten  with  many  stripes."  Lectured  in  Phillipston,  Thursday, 
January  19,  to  a  crowded  house.  Much  has  been  done  here  to 
suppress  intemperance.  The  sale  of  rum  is  not  licensed  in  the 
town,  yet  they  have  to  contend  against  the  influence  of  the  sur- 
rounding towns.  Lectured  in  Petersham,  Friday,  Jan.  20th. 
It  has  been  up-stream  work  in  tin's  place,  yet  much. has  been 
done.  Lectured  in  the  Orthodox  Church;  it  was  crowded  to 
overflowing;  the  people  much  interested,  and  many  signed  the 
pledge.  Lectured  at  Athol,  Saturday  and  Sunday.  This  place 
has  done  much  in  the  good  cause.  Ruin,  however,  is  sold  in  a 
ta\(-rn  in  UK;  village,  approbated  by  a  selectman,  a  member 
of  the  church,  and  a  member  of  the  Washington  Temperance 
Society.  O  consistency  !  Monday,  lectured  in  Royalston  ;  this 

22 


254  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

is  a  teetotal  town ;  no  license  is  granted  to  make  drunkards, 
paupers,  and  thieves,  for  the  public  good.  Tuesday,  lectured 
in  Winchendon  ;  they  have  done  well  in  this  town ;  the  Cold 
Water  Army  is  wide  awake." 

We  make  the  following  extract  from  the  Journal  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Marsh,  of  New  York :  - 

A  letter  from  our  friend  Hawkins,  dated,  Boston,  Feb.  20th, 
says,—  "I  am  still  travelling,  and  doing  all  I  can,  in  my  weak- 
ness, but  in  the  strength  of  God,  to  save  the  poor  drunkard.  I 
have  witnessed  many,  very  many  happy  scenes  of  reformation. 
I  long  to  see  you,  to  talk  to  you,  and  relate  some  of  them  to 
you.  I  know  they  would  warm  up  your  heart,  I  see  from  the 
papers  you  are  going  ahead  in  your  city.  We  are  doing  well 
here  in  this  city ;  in  fact,  the  cause  is  in  a  most  prosperous  con- 
dition throughout  New  England. 

« I  have  travelled,  since  March,  1841,  over  seventeen  thou- 
sand miles,  and  delivered  over  seven  hundred  addresses,  and 
these  not  very  short.  You  may  judge  from  this  that  rny  labor 
has  been  very  great.  But  what  is  it  for  ?  Thanks  be  to  God  for 
the  thought,  it  is  for  the  reformation  of  the  poor  drunkard,  and 
the  ultimate  salvation  of  his  soul.  Now,  some  would  say,  there 
is. too  much  religion  in  this.  Oh  !  how  can  any  one  say  so? 
especially  the  reformed  drunkard,  when  he  owes  gratitude  to 
God  for  every  drop  of  water  that  he  drinks." 

We  are  sorry  to  see,  by  a  public  statement  which  has  been 
drawn  out  from  Mr.  Hawkins,  that  he  has  been  very  poorly 
supported.  Such  things  ought  not  so  to  be.  If  any  HUM 
should  be  well  sustained  it  should  be  the  men  who  are  dom; 
the  good  in  our  country  that  John  Hawkins  is. 

The  following  letter  shows  that  the  Bostonians,  at 
least,  were  not  indifferent  to  the  temporal  comfort  of 
Mr.  Hawkins  and  his  family :  - 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  255 

BOSTON,  March  31st,  1843. 

MY  DEAR  CHILDREN,  —  My  object  in  writing  you  at  this 
time  ia  to  inform  you  that  on  next  Fast-day  eve  the  Boston 
Temperance  Society  propose  to  give  a  concert  in  Marlboro' 
Chapel,  for  my  benefit.  We  are  anxious  that  you  should  be 
here.  I  have,  therefore,  enclosed  ten  dollars  to  pay  your  fare 
on  the  railroad  :  this  will  more  than  pay  for  yourself  and  sis- 
ters. Arthur  will  remain  at  school,  and  when  his  aunt  and 
sister  come  up  he  shall  take  a  trip  with  them  to  Springfield. 
I  want  him  to  be  a  good  boy  and  I  will  reward  him  for  it. 

You,  with  your  sisters,  will  take  the  cars  on  the  morning  of 
Wednesday,  the  5th  day  of  April.  I  am  to  be  in  Holliston, 
five  or  six  miles  from  Framingham,  on  Tuesday  evening,  and 
will  meet  you  in  Framingham  on  the  morning  train  ;  I  need 
not  say,  Do  not  fail  to  meet  me. 

My  respects  to  Mr.  Goodnow  and  wife,  the  young  ladies, 
and  the  keeper  of  the  boarding-house. 

Your  father,  affectionately,  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

We  have  omitted  to  mention  a  very  important  meet- 
ing, held  in  Faneuil  Hall,  Boston,  on  the  22d  of  Feb- 
ruary, Washington's  birthday,  and  which  was  contin- 
ued on  four  succeeding  evenings.  The  object  of  these 
meetings  was  to  arouse  public  sentiment  to  the  in- 
iquity of  the  traffic  in  intoxicating  drinks,  and  to  devise 
measures  for  its  abatement  or  entire  suppression.  Men 
of  distinction  and  influence  united  in  the  movement. 
Addresses  were  made  by  Dr.  Warren,  Mr.  Brimmer, 
the  Mayor,  General  Lyman,  Mr.  Rantoul,  and  Mr. 
Hawkins.  The  house  on  Friday  evening  was  filled  to 
its  utmost  capacity  ;  the  galleries  were  crowded  with 
ladies.  At  one  of  the  meetings  several  fire  companies 
were  present,  the  members  of  which  were  all  temper- 
ance men.  We  can  find  room  for  a  part  only  of  Mr. 


256  LIFE    OP  JOHrt   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Hawkins'  remarks,  as  they  were  reported  in  one  of  the 
daily  papers.  They  were  spoken  of  as  being  pecu- 
liarly eloquent  and  effective. 

He  said  he  could  not  look  back  on  his  past  life  without  emo- 
tion, and  recall  to  memory  his  former  intemperate  habits,  and 
reflect  that  it  was  not  three  years  since  he  had  signed  the 
pledge.  He  spoke  of  the  terrible  evils  which  intemperance 
had  caused  to  the  hard-working  mechanic  and  laborer.  This 
was  the  class  which  had  contributed  most  to  the  support  of  the 
still  and  the  brewery,  and  this  they  had  done  at  a  terrible  ex- 
pense —  at  the  expense  of  property,  honor,  their  own  happiness, 
and  the  happiness  of  their  families.  He  said  that  if  the  ravages 
of  intemperance  were  confined  to  the  most  worthless  of  society 
it  would  not  be  so  bad ;  but  its  victims  were  frequently  found 
among  the  best  workmen,  and  those  who  possessed  many  esti- 
mable qualities.  He  traced  the  progress  of  the  temperance 
reform  from  1823  to  the  present  time,  and  paid  a  beautiful 
passing  tribute  to  those  noble  minds  who,  in  the  face  of  public 
opinion,  dared  then  come  forward  and  attempt  to  close  the  flood- 
gates of  intemperance.  He  spoke  of  the  habit  of  drinking 
wine,  and  rejoiced  that  all  distinctions  in  the  character  of  the 
drink  used  no  longer  existed  —  that  the  brandy-drinker  and  the 
wine-bibber,  the  poor  and  the  rich,  all  stood  on  the  same  plat- 
form and  saw  themselves  through  the  same  glass.  He  quoted 
a  beautiful  sentiment  from  an  address  of  Father  Matthew,  that 
"  Temperance  was  a  green  spot  in  the  desert  of  life,  where  all 
men  could  meet  in  peace  and  harmony."  He  rejoiced  to  see 
men  of  influence  and  standing  enter  into  the  temperance  ranks 
and  give  their  aid  to  the  cause. 

The  seventh  anniversary  of  the  American  Temper- 
ance Union  was  held  on  the  llth  of  May,  1843,  in  the 
city  of  New  York.  Chancellor  Wai  worth  was  chosen 
President,  and  the  Hon.  Theodore  Frelinghuysen,  Vice 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  257 

President.  It  was  an  occasion  of  great  interest,  and 
resolutions  were  passed  expressive  of  the  liveliest  grat- 
itude to  Almighty  God  for  the  progress  that  had  been 
made  in  abating  intemperance  during  the  past  year. 
The  meeting  in  the  evening,  at  the  Broadway  Taber- 
nacle, called  together  an  immense  assemblage,  to  listen 
to  the  report  of  the  Secretary,  and  the  addresses  ex- 
pected from  distinguished  individuals  known  to  be  in 
the  city.  Effective  speeches  were  made  by  Hon.  George 
S.  Catlin,  of  Connecticut,  Dr.  Patton,  and  Rev.  John 
Chambers.  Mr.  Hawkins  was  present,  but  preferred 
being  a  listener  to  the  older  friends  of  the  cause.  He 
did,  however,  make  a  few  remarks,  under  the  circum- 
stances thus  referred  to  by  Dr.  Marsh.  At  the  con- 
clusion of  Rev.  Mr.  Chambers'  remarks,  the  Secretary 
stated  that  he  had  hoped  to  have  the  pleasure  of  in- 
troducing the  Rev.  Dr.  Beecher  to  the  meeting,  one 
of  the  old  pioneers  who  first  caused  his  battle-axe  to 
ring  on  the  walls  of  King  Alcohol,  sending  terror  into 
the  heart  of  the  demon  and  his  allies,  but  he  was  en- 
gaged in  speaking  in  another  part  of  the  city ;  and  as 
Mr.  Hawkins,  the  apostle  of  Washingtonianism,  who 
had  been  announced,  wished  to  be  excused  from  speak- 
ing, the  meeting  would  be  closed  by  another  song  from 
the  vocalists  of  New  Hampshire  (the  Hutchinsons). 
The  name  of  "  Hawkins,"  however,  was  loudly  called 
from  several  parts  of  the  house,  and  Mr.  Hawkins  came 
on  to  the  platform  made  a  short  speech  of  unusual  power 
and  a  heart-touching  appeal.  Before  he  closed  Dr. 
Beecher  cnlcrcd,  and  came  upon  the  platform  amid  the 
cheers  of  the  immense  audience.  Mr.  Hawkins  ex- 
pressed his  most  lively  gratitude  at  being  perm i tied  for 

22* 


258  LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

the  first  time  to  set  his  eyes  upon  Father  Beecher, 
whose  six  sermons  had  often  strengthened,  cheered, 
and  animated  his  heart.  He  said  he  would  gladly  give 
way  to  him  that  he  might  hear  the  same  words  from 
his  own  lips.  He  sat  down  amid  deafening  applause. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

"  Hurrah  !  hurrah !  we've  burst  the  chain 
O  God  !  how  long  it  bound  us ! 
We  run !  we  leap !  O  God  again 
Thy  light,  thy  air  surround  us. 
From  midnight's  dungeon-depths  brought  out, 
We  hail  Hope's  rising  star ; 
Ho,  comrades,  give  a  stirring  shout, 
Hurrah !  hurrah !  hurrah  !  " 

MR.  HAWKINS  having  completed  his  engagements 
in  the  following  places,  delivering  effective  and  stirring 
addresses  in  each ;  viz.,  West  Brookfield,  Springfield, 
Cabotville,  West  Springfield,  Hartford,  Wethersfield, 
Middletown,  New  Haven,  Bridgeport,  and  Danbury, 
made  his  arrangements  for  an  extensive  tour  in  middle 
and  western  New  York. 

On  rea3hing  Albany  he  commenced  the  following 
letter  to  his  sister,  Mrs.  Schaeffer,  which  he  did  not 
conclude  until  he  reached  the  Falls  of  Niagara :  — 

ALBANY,  June  15,  1843. 

MY  DEA  R  SISTER,  —  I  promised  that  you  should  hear  from 
me  upon  my  arrival  in  New  York.  I  have  neglected  to  com- 
ply with  my  promise,  for  the  want  of  sufficient  matter  to  com- 
municate ;  I  need  not  ask  your  forgiveness. 

My  wife  did  not  meet  me  here  until  Surday  morning,  June 
4th,  on  account  of  her  health,  which  has  in  a  good  measure 
improved.  We  are  stopping  with  Mr.  Jonas  Wickes,  who  is  the 
clerk  of  Albany  County  Court;  I  stopped  with  him  a  year  ago 
last  January,  when  on  a  visit  to  city.  He  is  is  a  very  kind 

(259) 


260  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

and  good  man.  I  shall  be  here  for  several  days.  My  wife  will 
go  to  Wilbraham  when  I  leave  here,  and  stay  with  the  children 
to  see  to  their  clothes,  &c.,  &c.,  and  meet  me  at  Saratoga 
Springs  about  the  middle  of  July,  spending  a  few  days  there. 

What  a  pleasant  jaunt ;  I  wish  you  could  be  with  us.  She 
will  leave  S with  the  other  children,  so  as  not  to  be  encum- 
bered and  her  pleasure  consequently  lessened.  After  our  tarry 
at  the  Springs,  we  shall  return  to  Boston  by  the  way  of  Wil- 
braham, stopping  there  a  few  days. 

You  see  by  the  above  that  I  do  not  at  present  settle  in  New- 
York  city,  owing  to  the  difficulty  in  raising  funds  for  my  sup- 
port. Since  I  left  you  I  have  been  to  New  London  *  and  Sag 
Harbor  (on  "Long  Island),  by  special  invitation,  to  lecture  ; 
they  were  very  kind  to  me. 

We  left  New  York  on  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  June 
14th,  for  Albany,  in  the  large  steamboat  Empire;  the  longest 
boat,  it  is  said,  in  the  United  States,  being  three  hundred  and 
thirty-five  feet  in  length.  The  fare  was  fifty  cents,  distance 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  ;  sometimes  the  fare  is  as  low  as 
twenty-five  cents,  and  even  twelve  and  a  half  cents,  the  oppo- 
sition is  so  great. 

I  have  laid  out  for  myself  a  large  field  of  labor  in  western 
New  York,  ending  at  Buffalo,  and  thence  to  Niagara  Falls, 
taking  in  my  route  the  principal  towns  on  the  great  Western 
Railroad  and  Erie  canal,  and  returning  the  same  route,  take 
in  some  of  the  same  towns  in  connection  with  others,  and  shall 
endeavor  to  be  at  Saratoga  Springs  by  the  middle  of  July,  if 
possible,  where  I  have  a  special  invitation  to  speak  to  drunk- 
ards and  drunkenness  in  high  places. 

*  Of  the  results  of  this  visit  the  Journal  of  the  American  Temperance 
Union  remarks :  — 

"NEW  LONDON,  CT.  —  John  Hawkins  has  lately  visited  this  city  and 
delivered  three  temperance  speeches.  At  a  recent  election  for  city  officers, 
the  temperance  men  run  a  ticket  of  their  own,  which  was  earned  by  an 
overwhelming  majority." 


LIFE  OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  261 

NIAGABA  FALLS,  July  7,  1843. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER,  — You  will  see  by  the  above,  that  I 
commenced  writing  you  while  in  Albany,  and  not  only  finish 
that  letter,  but  commence  writing  another  on  the  same  sheet,  at 
this,  as  it  were,  the  great  "jumping-off  place"  of  the  United 
States.     The  grand  cataract  of  Niagara!    the  most  sublime 
sight  I  ever  beheld!     It  would  be  useless  for  me  to  attempt 
to  give  you  any  thing  like  a  correct  description  of  the  sight 
which  my  eyes  are  now  resting  upon  from  the  window  of  my 
room,  in  the  «  Exchange  Temperance  Hotel."     I  stop,  and  sol- 
emnly lay  down  my  pen,  and  adore  the  goodness  and  greatness 
God  in  his  wondrous  works;  his  ways  indeed  "are  past 
finding  out."     Only  think!  that  over  this  stupendous  cataract, 
passes  nearly  all  the  water  of   the  great   lakes;    first,  Lake 
Michigan  into  and  through  Lake  Huron,  thence  through  Lake 
Superior,   all   of   these    emptying   their   surplus    waters    into 
Lake  Erie,  and  passing  onward  through  Niagara  River,  over 
the  Falls  into  Lake  Ontario,  thence  into  the  river  St.  Lawrence, 
and  thence  into  the  mighty  deep.     What  a  feeding  of  the 
mighty  ocean,  upon  whose  waters  so  many  human  beings  are 
constantly  passing  and  repassing ;  where  thousands  of  poor, 
suffering  wretches,  seeking  an  asylum  in  our  happy  land,  too 
often  find  a  wateiy  grave,  and  thus  suddenly  appear  before  the 
Great  Judge  of  heaven  and  earth,  with  all  their  sins  upon  their 
guilty  heads !   oh,  what  awful  thoughts  rush  upon  the   mind 
when  we  contemplate  the  dying  and  the  dead !     Great  God, 
upon  what  a  slender  thread  hangs  all  that  we  have  and  are! 
My  dear  sister,  he  has  been  your  friend,  he  has  indeed  been 
mine.     Oh,  what  shall  we  render  to  him  for  all   his  forbear- 
ances and  his  mercies  ?  to  God  be  all  the  glory !  to  man  the 
boundless  bliss ;  and  this  far  more  than  he  deserves. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  towns  where  I  have  lectured  on 
my  way  to  this  place :  Schenectady,  Utica,  Syracuse,  Auburn, 
Rochester,  IJullal,,,  wh«-ro  I  spent  the  4th  of  July,  and  where 
we  had  indeed  a  glorious  temperance  time.  I  remain  here  at 


262  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

the  Falls  and  lecture  two  evenings.  Saturday  and  Sunday 
(8th  and  9th),  I  spend  in  Lockport,  then  returning  to  Buf- 
falo by  way  of  the  Falls,  stop  in  Buffalo  by  previous  engage- 
ment to  lecture  on  Tuesday,  July  llth.  On  the  next  day  I 
leave  on  ray  return  home  to  Boston,  taking  the  following  places 
in  my  route ;  it  may  take  me  till  the  last  of  the  month  before 
I  reach  the  Springs  ;  you  shall  then  hear  from  me  again  :  Ba- 
tavia,  Rochester,  Geneva,  Auburn,  where  I  hope  to  be  on  Sun- 
day, July  16th,  to  address  the  inmates  of  the  State  Prison, 
seven  hundred  in  number,  by  special  engagement  on  the 
part  of  the  prisoners ;  thence  to  Syracuse,  Rome,  Little  Falls, 
Schenectady,  and  thence  to  Saratoga  Springs,  where  I  hope 
to  meet  my  wife  in  good  health  and  spirits.  Remaining 
there  a  few  days,  I  take  the  cars  and  boat  to  Albany,  then  the 
railroad  over  the  Berkshire  hills  to  Wilbraham,  where  the 
children  will  hail  us  with  joy  and  gladness.  As  God  has  so 
kindly  protected  me  from  harm  and  accident  in  all  my  travels, 
I  pray  he  will  still  continue  to  take  care  of  me,  and  bless  my 
labors,  ever  keeping  me  humble  before  him,  remembering  that 
"  he  that  humbleth  himself  shall  be  exalted,  and  he  that  exalt- 
eth  himself  shall  be  abased."  My  dear  sister,  pray  for  me ; 
and  may  all  my  friends  pray  for  me.  My  position  in  society 
is  a  responsible  one,  but  God  is  on  my  side ;  I  should,  therefore, 
have  nothing  to  fear,  but  trust  in  him,  and  follow  him  as  my 
leader,  and  fear  no  danger.  The  path  of  duty  is  the  way  of 
safety.  At  this  moment,  while  I  write,  I  am  called  to  dinner. 

The  "  Falls "  is  literally  crammed  with  strangers  coming 
and  going,  from  all  parts  of  the  United  States  and  Canada. 
After  dinner  I  took  the  stage,  which  runs  every  hour  for  the 
Rapids  and  Whirlpool,  about  three  miles  below  the  Falls  ; 
tfhat  a  grand  and  awful  sight,  to  see  such  a  body  of  water 
•ushing  through  a  narrow  defile  of  about  one  hundred  yards  wide, 
dashing  and  whirling  with  the  appearance  of  wicked  anger,  as 
if  it  was  striving  to  tear  up  the  very  foundations  of  the  earth. 

I  came  near  forgetting  to  give  you  a  short  description  of 


LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  263 

my  journey  to  this  place  from  Buffalo.  I  left  Buffalo  in  the  steam- 
boat "Waterloo ;  proceeding  down  the  Niagara  River,  we  stopped 
and  landed  some  passengers  at  Schlosser,  about  three  miles  above 
the  Falls ;  the  wharf  where  we  landed  them  was  the  one  from 
which  the  Canadians  cut  adrift  the  steamboat  Caroline,  set  her 
on  fire,  and  then  towed  her  into  the  stream,  and  sent  her  over 
the  Falls.  From  this  place  we  passed  over  to  Chippewa,  on 
the  Canadian  side.  There  we  all  landed  and  took  the  cars 
through  this  portion  of  Canada,  and  arrived  at  the  foot  of  the 
Falls.  There  we  crossed  over  to  the  American  side  just  below 
and  almost  under  the  great  Cataract,  amidst  the  boiling  surges. 
The  only  way  of  safely  crossing  here  is  in  strong  row-boats 
built  expressly  for  the  purpose,  having  for  their  oarsmen  strong 
men,  who  understand  how  to  tug  against  the  raging  waters  that 
lash  the  rocks  and  banks  of  the  river  in  angry  fury.  After 
landing  we  ascended  a  stairway,  made  with  great  difficulty  up 
the  almost  perpendicular  side  of  the  river's  bank,  more  than 
two  hundred  feet  in  height.  Arriving  at  the  top,  we  have  the 
Falls  in  full  view,  with  the  awful  deep  below.  The  travellei 
is  now  well  paid  for  the  fatigues  of  his  journey  in  getting  here 
many  of  them  not  very  slight.  In  crossing  the  river  in  the 
steamboat  already  mentioned,  three  miles  above  the  Falls,  we 
are  exposed  to  great  hazard.  If  the  boat  should  become  dis- 
abled and  unmanageable,  she  must  inevitably  —  there  is  no 
way  of  escape  —  go  over  the  Falls  and  be  dashed  in  pieces. 
But,  to  guard  against  dangers  of  this  kind,  the  anchors  are 
made  ready,  the  men  stand  by,  and  in  case  of  accident  they 
are  thrown  over,  which  is  the  only  means  of  safety.  I  have 
written  you  a  long  letter;  I  know,  however,  it  is  not  too  long, 
ns  you  are  always  glad  to  hear  from  me.  Had  I  more  space 
I  could  have  spread  out  my  thoughts  more,  for  I  had  mucJ 
more  to  say.  My  love  to  all 

Very  affectionately,  your  brother,  JOHN. 

While  at  Albany  he  addressed  the  following  briei 
note  to  his  children :  — 


264  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ALBANY,  June  16th,  1843. 

MY  DEAR  CHILDREN,  —  This  will  inform  you  where  I  am, 
and  of  my  usual  good  health,  for  which  I  feel  thankful  to  my 
heavenly  Father,  w.ho  has  indeed  dealt  very  kindly  with  me. 
He  has,  as  you  know,  raised  me  out  of  the  pit  of  wretchedness, 
"  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouth,"  and  made  me  the  happy,  hum- 
hie  instrument  in  his  hands  of  saving  my  fellow-men.  My  dear 
children,  you  have,  with  me,  great  cause  indeed  to  rejoice  in 
the  "  God  of  your  salvation,"  for  what  he  has  done  for  me. 

If  either  of  you  have  grown  lukewarm,  and  have  cause  to 
reproach  yourselves  for  your  want  of  zeal,  go  straight  to  the 
throne  of  grace,  go  to  your  heavenly  Father,  who  "  heareth  in 
secret,  and  he  will  reward  you  openly."  O  my  dear  children, 
you  do  not  know  how  anxious  I  feel  for  your  temporal,  and 
more  especially  for  your  spiritual,  welfare.  My  dear  son,  per- 
mit me  to  say  to  you  in  solemn  seriousness,  prepare  yourself, 
for  I  feel  that  God  has  a  work  for  you  to  do  in  calling  sinners 
to  repentance.  I  have  a  great  deal  to  say,  but  must  defer  it 
till  some  other  time. 

Probably,  I  shall  be  with  you  some  time  in  July  ;  you  shall 
hear.  I  send  you  in  a  small  bundle  two  fine  pineapples ;  you 
must  take  care  they  do  not  make  you  sick. 

It  is  important  to  me,  the  moment  you  receive  this  and  read 
it,  that  you  answer  it,  that  it  may  come  by  return  mail  (of  Mon- 
day), and  let  me  know  the  day  of  vacation. 

Your  father,  affectionately,       JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

The  foregoing  letters  furnish  no  statement  of  what 
Mr.  Hawkins  accomplished  in  the  various  towns  vis- 
ited ;  this  he  gave  in  detail  in  his  letters  to  the  New- 
England  Washing-tonian,  published  in  Boston;  and 
even  those  letters  do  not  contain  full  information  of 
his  labors  through  the  day,  in  each  place  visited,  which 
he  usually  spent  in  calling  upon  unfortunate  men  and 
women  at  their  humble  dwellings. 


LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  265 

Nor  were  his  services  unappreciated  in  the  mansions 
of  the  wealthy.  On  one  occasion  he  received  a  note 
in  the  hand-writing  of  a  female,  desiring  him  to  call 
at  her  residence  at  an  hour  appointed.  He  repaired 
there  at  the  time  specified,  conjecturing  that  it  was  the 
case  of  a  wife  or  mother,  solicitous  for  the  rescue  of  a 
husband  or  a  son  from  intemperance.  He  found  the 
residence  on  one  of  the  most  fashionable  streets  in  the 
city,  exhibiting  every  appearance  of  luxury  and  wealth. 
Having  announced  his  name,  he  was  asked  to  walk 
into  the  drawing-room.  In  a  few  moments  the  lady 
entered,  magnificently  attired.  He  was  gratefully  and 
modestly  received ;  but  what  was  his  astonishment  on 
being  informed  that  the  person  before  him  had  sent 
for  him  to  consult  and  advise  with  him  in  regard  to 
her  own  habits  of  intemperance,  which  she  feared  were 
rapidly  working  out  the  ruin  of  her  soul  and  body. 
She  made  a  fall  confession  of  her  sin,  with  tearful 
eyes,  appealing  to  him  as  if  he  alone  possessed  the 
power  of  rescuing  her.  He  gave  her  the  best  advice 
he  could,  and  had  the  pleasure  afterwards  of  hearing 
of  her  entire  restoration  to  sobriety  and  peace  of  mind. 
Mr.  Hawkins  never  divulged  the  name  of  the  party,  or 
the  scene  of  this  incident. 

We  make  the  following  extracts  from  his  letter  to 
the  Washington!  an,  before  referred  to. 

BUFFALO,  July  6,  1843. 
To  the  JSditor  of  the  Washingtonian : 

RESPECTED  FRIEND,  —  When  I  parted  from  you  in  New 
London,  June  12th,  I  promised  I  would  write  you.  I  have 
neglected  to  do  so  until  this  time  for  want  of  accumulated 
interesting  matter.  I  hope  it  will  not  be  uninteresting  to  sketch 
briefly  my  sojournings,  etc. 
23 


266  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

My  passage  to  Albany  by  steamer  Empire  was  delightful. 
I  at  once  reported  myself  to  the  friends  of  temperance, 
who  immediately  went  about  getting  up  meetings  for  me,  by 
publishing  notice  of  them  in  the  papers,  and  by  posting  hand- 
bills all  over  the  city,  stating  that  I  would  lecture  at  the  Washing- 
tonian  Hall  on  Thursday,  Friday,  and  Saturday  evenings.  No 
address,  however,  was  given,  for  there  were  not  enough  people 
at  all  the  meetings  put  together  to  fill  a  common  country  school- 
house.  At  this  period  the  people  of  Albany  are  but  little 
aroused  to  the  evils  that  afflict  their  city.  The  weather  was 
good.  I  give  you  the  facts  without  comment ;  they,  in  this 
case,  are  sufficiently  indicative  of  the  state  of  feeling  there. 
This  is  certainly  the  hardest  place  I  have  found  in  twenty 
thousand  miles  travelling.  I  lectured  in  Troy  on  Monday  and 
Tuesday,  the  19th  and  20th  inst. ;  they  have  done  much  here 
in  the  cause.  I  had  made  appointments  in  Lansingburg  and 
Waterford,  but  was  so  ill  with  influenza  that  I  could  not  fill 
them.  As  soon  as  I  got  better  I  went  down  the  river  to 
Hudson  to  fill  appointments  there.  Lectured  on  Saturday  and 
Sunday  to  crowded  audiences  in  the  court  house.  They  have 
done  a  great  deal  here  in  the  cause  of  temperance. 

While  Mr.  Hawkins  was  at  Hudson  another  effort 
was  made  in  Albany  to  rally  the  friends  of  the  cause. 
Notice  was  given  on  Sunday  in  many  of  the  churches, 
some  of  the  ministers  refusing  to  read  the  notice,  that 
there  would  be  a  lecture  in  the  Rev.  Dr.  "Welch's  Church 
on  Monday  evening.  Monday  evening  came  and  the 
vestry  was  about  half  filled.  Mr.  Hawkins  remarks 
that  several  of  the  clergy  of  Albany  refused  to  sympa- 
thize with  the  new  movement,  and  adds,  "  I  make  no 
comments." 

*  *  *  On  Tuesday  I  took  my  departure  in  the  cars,  the 
fastest  mode  of  travel,  for  Schenectady,  and  lectured  at  night 
to  a  crowded  house.  They  are  wide  awake  here ;  I  shall  stop 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.      .  267 

here  again  on  my  return.  I  don't  know  that  I  shall  pass 
through  Albany  ;  if  I  do  I  think  it  will  be  in  a  hurry.  There 
is  a  good  Temperance  House  in  Schenectady  ;  I  recommend  it 
to  the  temperance  public.  Wednesday  arrived  in  Utica. 
Found  a  good  Temperance  House ;  its  proprietor,  Mr.  Hay,  I 
found  an  obliging  landlord  ;  his  house  is  convenient  to  the  canal 
and  railroad.  Utica  has  done  more  than  most  places  in  the 
reformation  of  the  drunkard.  They  have  made  thorough  work 
of  it.  Thursday,  June  29th,  I  lectured  to  a  good  audience  at 
Syracuse.  I  shall  stop  again  on  my  return.  I  was  met  here 
by  a  delegation  of  temperance  men  from  Auburn,  who  gladly 
welcomed  me  to  their  city.  On  Friday,  June  30th,  I  lectured 
to  a  large  audience  at  Auburn  ;  much  has  been  done  here ;  I 
shall  stop  here  again  on  my  return.  Saturday  and  Sunday, 
July  1st  and  2d,  in  Rochester.  Here  they  came  near  taxing 
me  beyond  my  powers  of  endurance,  making  four  appointments 
for  me  to  lecture  on  Sunday  ;  I  filled  them  to  the  best  of  my 
ability.  At  night  I  lectured  in  the  theatre  ;  it  was  a  perfect 
jam,  pit  and  gallery  ;  I  felt  much  freedom  in  my  remarks  to 
the  assembled  masses.  I  shall  delay  here  a  short  time  also  on 
my  return,  by  their  special  request.  I  am  stopping  at  the 
United-States  Temperance  House,  J.  R.  Parker,  proprietor; 
this  is  a  temperance  house  of  the  first  class  ;  the  Croton  House 
in  New  York,  kept  by  Messrs.  Ives  and  Moore,  not  excepted. 
His  reading-room,  table,  attendance,  and  himself  are  all 
agreeable.  July  3d  I  took  my  departure  in  the  cars  for  Buffalo ; 
great  preparations  are  making  for  the  celebration  of  the  Glorious 
Fourth. 

July  4th,  Independence-day,  was  ushered  in  by  the  roar  of 
eannon,  not  from  the  Canada  side,  but  from  our  side,  which  I 
can  assure  you  made  the  welkin  ring.  Many  of  the  Canadians 
came  over  to  celebrate  the  independence  of  America  by  gettin^ 
beastly  drunk  ;  and  very  many  of  the  Americans  were  not  free 
from  the  effects  of  their  liberty.  The  most  drunkenness  I  ever 
saw  in  one  day  was  among  the  Indians  visiting  the  city,  min- 


268  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

gling  with  the  citizens  in  the  celebration  of  American  freedom 
At  10  A.M.  we  mounted  the  rostrum.  The  "  Second  Declara- 
tion of"  the  reformed  drunkard's  "  Independence  "  was  read  by 
Harlow  S.  Lowe,  Esq. ;  after  which  the  vast  concourse  of 
people  were  addressed  by  Mr.  Du  Boice,  in  a  most  eloquent 
manner.  I  followed  him  with  a  few  remarks,  after  which  the 
meeting  broke  up  in  fine  spirits.  At  6  P.M.  we  assembled 
again  in  the  Methodist  Church;  the  house  was  crowded.  I 
gave  my  experience,  which  was  listened  to  with  profound 
attention,  but  interspersed  with  many  a  sob  and  flowing  tear. 
Wednesday  evening,  July  5th,  I  lectured  to  a  crowded  audience 
in  Park  Church. 

But  I  must  conclude  ;  you  shall  hear  from  me  again  shortly. 
I  leave  this  day  for  Niagara  Falls  to  fill  a  few  appointments 
there,  and  shall  then  commence  my  return  to  Boston,  which 
will  be  about  the  last  of  the  month.  You  will  please  say  to  the 
friends  of  temperance  in  Massachusetts  and  New  England  who 
may  want  my  services,  that  I  shall  be  pleased  to  serve  them  on 
my  return.  I  hope  they  will  not  forget  me,  as  I  have  seemed 
to  forget  them  from  my  long  absence.  I  cannot,  I  hope  I 
never  shall,  forget  their  many  kindnesses  to  me. 

No  more  at  present,  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  again  arriving  at  Auburn,  he  addressed  another 
letter  to  the  editor,  the  Rev.  C.  W.  Denison. 

AUBURN,  N.  Y.,  July  16th,  1843. 

MY  DEAR  BROTHER  DENISON,  —  I  wrote  you  last  from 
Buffalo.  I  then  took  my  departure  in  the  steamboat  "Water- 
loo for  the  Falls.  On  our  passage  down,  a  counterfeiter  was 
recognized  to  be  on  board,  whom  we  landed  at  Black  Rock,  in 
charge  of  two  officers  who  were  in  pursuit  of  him.  We  next 
landed  some  passengers  at  Schlosser,  who  to  all  appearance 
were  more  honest.  We  then  crossed  the  river  immediately 
above  the  cataract,  to  Chippewa,  on  the  Canada  ide.  Here 
we  took  the  cars  for  the  Falls.  We  then  crossed  to  the  Amcri- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  269 

can  side,  immediately  below  the  Falls,  in  strong  row  boats, 
built  expressly  for  that  kind  of  ferry.  I  remained  here  two 
clays  and  evenings,  giving  two  addresses  to  crowded  houses. 
They  have  done  almost  every  thing  that  can  be  done  to  advance 
the  cause  of  temperance  among  the  inhabitants,  all  having 
signed  the  pledge  that  have  come  to  the  years  of  maturity. 

Took  the  cars  for  Lockport.  Held  meetings  Saturday  and 
Sunday.  Much  has  been  done  in  this  place  to  advance  the 
cause  of  temperance.  Monday,  July  10th,  returned  to  the  Fulls  ; 
remained  a  few  hours  and  took  the  cars  for  Buffalo.  There 
arrived  here  to-day  from  Toronto,  Canada,  a  temperance  party, 
in  number  five  hundred.  They  could  not  all  be  accommodated 
on  this  side,  and  half  of  them  had  to  take  quarters  on  the  other 
side  of  the  Falls.  I  must  here  remark  for  the  information  of 
those  who  visit  the  Falls,  that  there  is  a  good  temperance  house 
here,  kept  by  Cyrus  Smith,  immediately  opposite  the  Cataract 
House.  I  recommend  it  to  the  friends  of  temperance  ;  —  but  it 
so  happens  with  the  friends  of  temperance,  the  moment  they 
leave  home  on  a  journey  they  appear  to  have  a  propensity  to 
run  their  heads  into  the  first  rum-hole  they  come  to.  Tuesday 
evening,  July  llth,  I  addressed  a  crowded  audience  in  the 
Buffalo  M.  E.  Church.  Between  thirty  and  forty  signed  the 
pledge.  The  friends  of  temperance  have  done  much  to  reform 
the  drunkard  in  this  place. 

Notwithstanding  the  untiring  efforts  of  the  friends  of  tem- 
perance in  endeavoring  to  give  a  character  to  the  cause,  and 
fixing  it  on  a  firm  foundation,  they  have  to  contend  against  the 
influence  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen,  who  are  the  true  friends 
of  rum  and  rum-sellers,  and  open  and  avowed  enemies  of  the 
cause  of  temperance  and  good  morals,  by  granting  licenses  to 
more  than  one  hundred  filthy,  low  grog-shops,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  dirty  ones  in  high  places,  especially  the  French  one. 
Last  week  Mr.  Charles  T.  Torrey,  of  Albany,  editor  of  the 
Patriot,  published  a  card  in  the  paper  of  Buffalo,  set- 
23* 


270  LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ting  forth  the  fact  that  he  counted  on  Sunday,  fifty  grog-shops 
in  full  operation,  while  those  of  a  higher  order  were  busily  en- 
gaged in  preparing  more  customers  for  ihe  lower  order  of  ero«* 

I  O         O 

shops. 

Wednesday,  July  12th,  I  left  Buffalo  for  Batavia.  Same 
clay,  in  the  afternoon,  addressed  a  crowd  of  people  from  the 
steps  of  the  court  house.  In  the  evening  held  a  meeting  in 
the  old  court  house ;  —  all  the  churches  closed  against  the 
cause  for  its  want  of  holiness.  However,  the  cause  has  many 
warm  friends  here,  who  have  done  much  to  advance  it,  not- 
withstanding the  powerful  influence  they  have  to  contend 
against ;  and  some  of  this  influence  exerted  by  a  distinguished 
divine,  who  sent  forth  a  memorable  sermon,  I  think  in  1835, 
against  total  abstinence,  in  which  he  says  that  "  the  triumph  of 
temperance  will  be  the  triumph  of  infidelity."  Thank  God 
for  the  triumph  that  many  hundreds  of  the  reformed  have  ex- 
perienced in  their  happy  conversion  to  God.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary for  a  man  to  be  a  fool  in  order  to  err,  for  many  of  our 
wisest  and  best  men  commit  some  of  the  grossest  errors.  For 
the  credit  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  I  must  here  record,  that  this  is 
the  first  place,  to  my  knowledge,  in  over  twenty  thousand  miles 
travel,  that  I  have  not  found  that  Church  opened  to  the  cause 
of  temperance,  which  is  acknowledged  to  be  the  cause  of  God. 
I  was  informed  that  the  church  here  was  closed  by  direction  of 
the  trustees ;  for  the  correctness  of  the  information  I  cannot 
vouch,  but  I  hope  Dr.  Bond  of  the  Christian  Advocate  and 
Journal,  and  Br.  Stevens  of  the  Ziorfs  Herald,  will  express 
themselves  on  this  subject,  ever  keeping  their  minds  on  the 
fact  that  the  Methodist  Church  has  received  the  largest  share 
of  the  returning,  prodigal  drunkards  into  its  bosom,  who 
make  good  working  members,  for  above  all  other  men  they 
have  the  greatest  cause  to  thank  God  for  their  miraculous  and 
happy  delivery. 

Thursday  evening,  July   13th,  I  addressed  an  overflowing 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  271 

audience  in  the  Bethel,  assisted  by  brother  Van  Wagner,  who  is 
on  his  way  farther  west.  God  speed  him  on  his  mission  of 
mercy. 

Friday  evening,  July  14th,  I  addressed  quite  a  respect- 
able audience  in  the  beautiful  village  of  Geneva,  in  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  They  have  done  wonders  here  ;  their  society 
consists  of  four  hundred  men,  nearly  three  hundred  of  them 
reformed  men. 

Saturday,  July  15th.  I  addressed  a  very  large  crowd  in 
the  streets  of  Auburn. 

On  Sunday  evening  addressed  an  overflowing  audience  in 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  this  place.  They  have  done 
nobly. 

My  present  appointments  will  run  out  on  Sunday  next,  23d 
instant,  at  Lansingburg.  I  shall  then  pay  my  children  a  visit 
at  Wilbraham  Academy,  and  about  "Wednesday  I  hope  to  be  at 
home  in  Boston.  Farewell  for  the  present.  You  shall  hear 
from  mo,  again. 

Yours,  &c., 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  returning  to  Boston  Mr.  Hawkins  furnished  the 
following  additional  particulars  of  his  late  journey  in  a 
communication  to  the  editor  of  the  Washingtonian :  — 

BOSTON,  August  6,  1843 

Ri:v.  C.  M.  DENISON  :  Dear  Brother,  —  The  following  ex- 
tracts from  rny  journal  will  finish  the  account  of  my  late  tour 
to  and  from  Western  New  York.  I  wrote  you  last  from 
Auburn,  July  1 6th.  I  had  fondly  hoped  that  on  my  return  to 
that  place  J  should  have  had  the  pleasure  of  addressing  the 
inmates  of  the  State  Prison.  Application  accordingly  was 
made  for  that  purpose  to  the  inspectors,  who  were  in  session 
••it  tin;  time  in  the  prison  ;  but  they,  in  their  wisdom  and  judg- 
ment, refused.  *  *  * 

Syracuse,  July  1 1th.  —  In  consequence  of  a  tremendous  gust 


272  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

of  wind  and  rain,  the  meeting  was  poorly  attended ;  however, 
they  have  done  nobly  in  the  cause  of  temperance. 

Little  Falls,  July  18th.  —  This  is  one  of  the  most  picturesque 
villages  I  have  ever  been  in ;  the  Temperance  Society  here  are 
independent  of  the  churches,  —  they  have  closed  their  doors 
against  the  cause,  —  having  a  large  and  commodious  hall  for 
their  meetings.  They  have  done  much  to  reform  the  drunk- 
ard, and  have  resolved,  in  order  to  keep  him  so,  not  to  remove 
the  reformed  man  out  of  the  way  of  temptation,  but  to  remove 
the  temptation  out  of  his  way  ;  that  is  to  say,  moral  suasion  for 
the  unfortunate  drunkard,  and  legal  suasion  for  the  drunkard 
MAKER.  This  is  as  it  should  be. 

Schenectady,  July  19th.  —  I  wrote  you,  July  6th,  that  I  should 
tarry  here  on  my  return  by  particular  request,  with  a  promise 
of  a  good  house  and  good  compensation.  The  first  part  only 
of  their  promise  was  complied  with. 

Saratoga  Springs,  July  20th  and  21st.  —  Addressed  two 
crowded  audiences  here,  but  it  is  up-hill  work  with  the  cause 
in  this  place:  principally  owing  to  the  drinking,  drunken, 
gambling,  profligate,  fluctuating  population ;  partially  resulting 
from  the  fathers  of  the  town  granting  licenses  to  all  who  apply 
for  the  sale  of  the  curse. 

I  ought  not  to  omit  stating  that  by  very  urgent  request  I  went 
to  Ballston  Spa,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  21st,  to  address  the 
people,  which  I  did.  It  cost  me  thirty-seven  and  a  half  cents 
to  get  there ;  they  paid  me,  by  way  of  compensation,  two  York 
shillings,  leaving  me  minus  only  twelve  and  a  half  cents.  Not 
so  bad. 

Waterford,  Saturday,  July  22d.  —  Lectured  to  a  well-filled 
house  ;  they  have  done  a  great  deal  to  advance  the  cause  in 
this  place.  Next  day,  Sabbath,  addressed  a  crowded  audience 
in  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Lansingburg ;  about  one  hour 
after  I  had  returned  to  my  lodgings  from  the  lecture,  a  fire 
broke  out  in  the  bowling-alley  of  a  grog-shop  in  the  rear  of  a 
wholesale  liquor  store,  owned  and  occupied  by  a  Mr.  F ;  it 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  273 

communicated  to  the  back  building  of  his  warehouse,  in  which 
was  stored  any  quantity  of  rum,  brandy,  etc.  The  hogsheads, 
barrels,  etc.,  began  to  burn,  and  the  liquid  fire  to  run  out  into 
the  alley,  thence  through  the  gutter  into  the  street,  down  the 
street  for  several  hundred  yards,  into  the  Hudson,  forming  one 
entire  sheet  of  flame.  I  heard  many  say,  "  Thank  God,"  and 
J  said  "  Amen,"  but  felt  sorry  for  the  loss  of  their  property.  As 
soon  as  the  burning  liquid  reached  the  edge  of  the  water,  it 
seemed  to  say,  "  Thus  far  shalt  thou  go  and  no  farther."  Oh, 
the  power  of  cold  water ! 

I  forgot  to  mention  another  evil  that  abounds  at  the  Springs, 
in  the  shape  of  ten-pin  alleys,  with  which  Boston  is  at  this  time 
doubly  cursed.     If  I  know  any  thing  of  these  sinks  of  iniquity, 
by  my  own  sad  experience,  I   would  here  invoke  the  moral 
and  religious  attention  of  their  honors  the  mayor  and  alder- 
men, and  especially  his  honor  the  marshal,  and  his  police,  to 
these  most  complete  schools  for  the  education  of  the  minor  in 
drunkenness,  and  thereby  preparing  him  for  the  house  of  cor- 
rection, and  State  Prison.     Here  in  the  city  of  Boston,  a  city 
held  up  as  a  moral  light  to  the  world,  ten-pin  alleys  have  in- 
creased to  an  alarming  extent.     The  rum-seller  has  taken  the 
matter  into  his  own   hands  as  it  were,  and  in  broad  daylight, 
and  on  the  Sabbath,  has  he  strengthened  his  arm  and   set  at 
defiance  the  mayor,  aldermen,  marshal,  police,  and  the  law, 
and  bids  them  do  their  worst;  and  in  this  he  is  backed  by 
owners  of  millions  of  dollars  in  property  in  and  about  the  city, 
many  of  them,  too,  members  of  Christian  churches !     They  do 
not  wish  the  cause  of  temperance  to  triumph,  for  their  property 
is  ,-it  stake  — it  would  depreciate  in  value,  etc.     For  Heaven's 
sake  let  us  deal  justly  !     If  the  rum-seller  ought  not  to  be  pros- 
ecuted for  a  violation  of  the  license  law,  do  not  prosecute  the 
]"»>'•  unfortunate,  drunkard  for  a  violation  of  the  drunken  law. 
"  Deal  justly,  love  mercy,  and  walk  humbly;"  we  have  a  right 
><>  ask  it,  and,  in  the,  name  of  justice,  we  demand  it,  as  free 
Americans.      *     *     *     It  is  my  deliberate  opinion  that  they 


274  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

ought  to  be  prosecuted  forthwith ;  the  cause  of  humanity  de- 
mands it ;  the  cries  of  the  widow  and  the  orphan  demand  it ; 
the  blood  of  murdered  thousands  demands  it ;  the  cries  pealing 
forth  from  our  almshouses,  houses  of  correction,  State  prisons, 
yea,  even  hell  itself,  peopled  by  millions  of  God's  noblest  work, 
to  fill  the  pockets  of  the  importer,  the  distiller,  and  vender,  de- 
mand it.  I  am  at  this  moment  reminded  that  a  distillery  is  in 
operation  here.  I  dropped  my  pen ;  I  repaired  to  the  spot, 
and,  sure  enough,  the  smoke  of  one  was  ascending.  I  called  a 
friend  to  witness,  that  upon  the  Sabbath,  August  6th,  1843, 
God's  day  of  holy  rest  is  violated  by  the  manufacture  of  rum. 
There  is  a  place,  the  torment  of  whose  fires  ascends  forever 
and  ever ;  a  place  where  there  is  weeping,  wailing,  and  gnash- 
ing of  teeth.  From  which  may  God  in  infinite  mercy  deliver 
us.  JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

It  was  during  Mr.  Hawkins'  tour  in  Western  New 
York,  if  the  compiler  of  this  memoir  is  rightly  informed, 
that  an  incident  occurred  which  is  singularly  illustrative 
of  his  promptness  in  reading  the  character  of  his  audi- 
tory, and  his  tact  in  adapting  his  remarks  to  the 
occasion  as  it  arose.  The  story  was  thus  told  in  the 
newspapers  of  the  day  :  — 

A  gentleman  of  good  standing  in  society  gives  the 
following  account  of  the  manner  in  which  he  was  cured 
of  wine  drinking.  "  I  was,"  says  he,  "  a  cheerful,  gen- 
erous wine-drinker,  and  after  drinking  with  some  friends 

at  the  T ,  where  we  indulged  ourselves  as  usual,  we 

strolled  out  in  the  edge  of  the  evening,  and  on  our 
return  passed  the  place  where  John  Hawkins  was 
speaking.  Observing  the  thronged  assembly  I  proposed 
going  in,  but  my  companions  laughed  at  my  folly; 
however  I  overruled  them,  and  we  sat  awhile  listening 
to  his  experience,  At  length  my  companions  proposed 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  275 

going,  and  rose  for  the  purpose,  when  Hawkins  observ- 
ing us  said,  '  Ho,  you  gentlemanly  wine  drinkers;  you 
need  not  retire,  for  T  shall  say  nothing  to  you  this 
evening.  My  business  lies  wholly  with  the  ,,oor  unfor- 
tunate drunkards.  I  wish  first  to  save  them,  and  when 
I  have  done  with  them  I  will  turn  to  you  ;  and  it  will 
be  only  a  continuance  of  my  work,  for  as  sure  as  you 
go  on  drinking  your  wine,  by  the  time  they  are  all 
reclaimed  you  will  assuredly  be  in  their  place  and  need 
the  same  charity.'  The  arrow  thus  shot  sunk  deep  in 
my  soul.  The  thought  of  taking  the  place  of  these 
drunkards  who  over  the  country  are  reforming  was  too 
much  for  me.  I  instantly  resolved  on  giving  up  wine 
drinking,  and  became  a  thorough  teetotaler." 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

"  Ye  who  have  marked  the  crimes  and  shames  that  throng 
Like  sateless  fiends,  the  drunkard's  way  along  — 
Ye  who  can  tell  his  everlasting  doom, 
When  darkly  over  him  shall  close  the  tomb  — 
Up  for  the  conflict !  —  let  your  battle-peal 
Ring  in  the  air,  as  rings  the  clash  of  steel, 
When,  rank  to  rank,  contending  armies  meet, 
Trampling  the  dead  beneath  their  bloody  feet ! 
Up  !  ye  are  bidden  to  a  nobler  strife  — 
Not  to  destroy,  but  rescue  human  life  — 
No  added  drop  in  misery's  cup  to  press, 
But  minister  relief  to  wretchedness." 

MR.  HAWKINS  did  not  remain  long  in  Boston*  after 
his  return  from  New  York.  Spending  less  than  three 
weeks  with  his  family,  he  started  for  the  State  of  Maine 
again,  and  the  Province  of  New  Brunswick.  The  in- 
vitations from  these  quarters  were  most  pressing  ;  the 
manner  in  which  he  was  received  will  appear  from  his 
letters,  some  of  which  were  published  in  the  Boston 

*  Mr.  Hawkins  was  not  idle  while  in  Boston.  He  watched  every 
movement  which  indicated  the  continuance  of  the  destructive  rum  traffic; 
he  was  bold,  and  oftentimes  considered  too  severe  in  his  rebukes.  Passing 
along  the  wharves  one  day,  his  attention  was  attracted  to  a  cargo  which 
was  being  put  on  board  a  vessel  bound  to  a  foreign  port,  which  led  to  the 
following  communication,  published  in  the  Washingtonian :  — 

"  NEW  ENGLAND  RUM  vs.  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 

"  MR.  EDITOR,  —  For  the  information  of  our  Foreign  Missions,  and 

all  others  concerned,  please  give  knowledge  of  the  fact  that  the  brig 

Lincoln,  now  lying  at  Lewis'  Wharf,  Boston,  is  loading  with  molasses  rum 

for  Smyrna.    What  a  comment  upon  a  civilized  and  Christian  (?)  nation  !" 

J.  H.  W.  II. 
(276) 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  277 

papers,  and  others  received  by  his  family.     The  follow- 
ing  was  addressed  to  the  editor  of  the  Washingtonian  : 

SOUTH  BERWICK,  Aug.  19,  1843. 

DEAR  BROTHER  DENISON, —  According  to  the  appoint- 
ment, Sunday,  the  13th,  I  addressed  a  crowded  audience  in 
Newburyport,  in  the  Rev.  Mr.  Pierce's  meeting-house  (Meth- 
odist). There  was  present  our  old  friend  Rev.  Dr.  Pierce,  of 
Brookline,  who  at  the  close  of  the  meeting  made  some  good 
and  acceptable  remarks,  which,  indeed,  are  always  well  received 
from  so  venerable  a  friend  cf  the  holy  cause  of  temperance. 

On  my  arrival  at  Portsmouth,  Monday,  August  14th,  the 
first  thing  that  attracted  my  attention  at  the  depot  was  several 
freight  cars  loaded  with  the  relics  of  the  last  distillery  in  this 
place ;  viz.,  several  stills  and  the  worm  of  the  still,  all  bound  to 
Boston,  I  suppose,  as  old  copper.  The  ground  on  which  the 
building  stood  is  never  more  to  be  used  for  that  purpose. 

I  lectured  at  night  in  the  open  air  near  Spring  Market.  I 
had  not  proceeded  far  before  I  received  an  egg  in  my  back. 
Rather  rough  treatment  all  round !  The  next  day  the  gentle- 
man (?)  was  recognized  as  being  a  notoriously  bad  man  by  the 
name  of  Rinaldo,  rather  a  famous  name  among  robbers.  I 
made  application  to  a  magistrate  for  a  little  "  legal  suasion"  to 
mix  with  my  "  moral  suasion."  It  was  granted,  and  the  egg 
cost  him  little  short  of  ten  dollars,  and  a  lodgment  in  jail.  I 
reckon  he  thought  eggs  had  nV-en  in  price. 

Many  of  the  members  of  the  society  becoming  indignant 
at  the  treatment  I  received,  determined  on  having  a  house  for 
Tuesday.  They  therefore  obtained  the  South  Baptist  Church, 
the  use  of  which  was  freely  given  for  the  purpose,  and  offered 
to  me  at  any  time  I  wished  it.  A  crier  was  sent  round,  and  at 
night  the  house  was  filled  to  overflowing,  and  we  had  a  first-rate 
meeting. 

At  Dover,  Wednesday,  Aug.  1 6th,  I  lectured  to  a  well-filled 
house. 

24 


278  LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

At  Great  Falls,  August  17th,  I  lectured  to  quite  a  crowd  ol 
men,  women,  and  children,  in  a  beautiful  grove,  in  the  after- 
noon, and  at  night  to  a  full  house  in  the  Baptist  Church.  Th.e 
temperance  men  of  this  place  intend  that  the  rum-sellers  shall 
take  a  trip  up  "  Salt  river,"  in  the  same  kind  of  boat  as  at  Do- 
ver. May  their  voyage  be  an  agreeable  one,  and  may  there 
be  no  falling  out  on  the  way,  Those  voyages,  if  I  can  under- 
stand men,  matters,  and  things,  are  about  to  become  very  gen- 
eral and  fashionable.  I  think  a  few  trips  from  Boston  would 
make  a  stir,  especially  among  the  ten-pin  alleys,  for  every  one 
of  them  has  a  bar  attached  to  it. 

Please  don't  forget  to  remind  our  friends,  the  maj-or,  marshal, 
and  the  police,  that  they  are  on  the  increase ;  and  that  for 
every  accident  that  happens  on  the  railroad  by  negligence  or 
otherwise,  the  company  is  responsible.  "  Look  out  for  the  en- 
gine while  the  bell  rings." 

Rum  has  been  driven  entirely  out  of  this  town,  and  they  who 
want  it  must  go  to  North  Berwick  for  it.  What  a  stigma  upon 
the  character  of  those  who  grant  licenses  in  that  town ! 

While  I  was  here,  the  only  drunkard  in  town  went  over  to 
North  Berwick  and  bought  a  quart  of  rum.  He  had  taken 
about  two  drinks  out  of  it  when  some  one  told  him  that  I  was 
down  at  the  Bank  and  wished  to  see  him.  He  came  there,  — 
pretty  well  corned.  After  a  great  deal  of  talking  and  "  moral 
suasion,"  we  got  him  on  the  pledge.  By  our  advice,  he  went 
home,  brought  his  bottle  containing  the  rum,  and  handed  it  to 
the  President  of  the  Bank,  who  handed  it  to  the  Cashier,  with 
an  order  to  seal  it  and  place  it  in  the  vault  for  safe  keeping  — 
to  the  joy  of  the  man,  as  well  as  of  all  present. 

My  intended  route  is  up  the  Kennebec,  across  to  and  down 
the  Penobscot ;  thence  down  east  to  Eastport ;  across  to  New 
Brunswick,  and  thence  to  Nova  Scotia;  thence  by  steamer 
home.'  How  much  of  this  contemplated  journey  I  shall  take  I 
know  not.  You  shall  hear  from  me  again. 

Yours  respectfully,        JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS.  279 

On  reaching  Eastport,  Maine,  he  addressed  the  fol- 
lowing letter  to  his  children,  who  were  still  at  school ; 
his  son  had  nearly  completed  his  studies  preparatory 
to  entering  college.  Allusion  has  been  made  to  in- 
stances where  Mr.  Hawkins  was  but  poorly  compen- 
sated for  his  services ;  it  will  be  seen  from  the  follow- 
ing letter  that  there  were  also  instances  in  which  those 
services  were  liberally  appreciated. 

EASTPORT,  ME.,  Sept.  29,  1843. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  The  letter  from  your  sister,  dated  Septem- 
ber   }  Came  safe  to  hand,  and  I  was  of  course  glad  to  hear  from 

you,  especially  that  you  were  all  doing  well,  and  enjoying  good 
health,  for  which  we  have  great  cause  to  be  thankful  to  Al- 
mighty God ;  let  us  not  forget  his  goodness  towards  us. 

You  see  that  I  have  wandered  "  away  Down  East,"  well 
nigh  as  far  as  I  can  go  without  going  into  the  Province  of  New 
Brunswick,  which  I  intend  to  do,  probably  as  far  as  St.  Johns, 
and  return  to  Boston  towards  the  last  of  October.  I  have  had 
quite  a  pleasant  and  profitable  time.  I  have  been  paid  better 
in  this  town  for  lecturing  than  at  any  other  on  my  route.  I 
left  Boston  on  the  13th  of  August,  and  I  have  on  hand,  includ- 
ing the  draft  I  send  you,  three  hundred  and  twenty  dollars, 
which  will  enable  me  to  pay  one  year  in  advance  when  you 
enter  college.  I  approve  of  yotfr  continuing  another  term  be- 
fore entering  college;  it  is  well  not  to  be  in  haste;  prepare 
yourself  well,  and,  like  David  Crockett,  "  be  sure  you  are  right 
and  then  go  ahead." 

I  propose  that  at  the  end  of  this  term  you  come  to  Boston, 
and  then  take  your  contemplated  trip  to  Baltimore.  When 
you  come  to  Boston  we  will  talk  more  fully  about  matters 
which  pertain  to  your  and  your  sisters'  future  prospects  in  re- 
gard to  education,  etc. 

Your  sisters  will  of  course  enter  another  term,  which  I  ap- 
prove very  much.  As  regards  entering  Mt.  Holyoke  Seminary 


280  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

that  must  be  a  matter  of  future  consideration ;  there  is  time 
enough  for  that ;  do  not  be  too  hasty.  I  want  you  all,  Arthur 
also,  to  gather  all  the  knowledge  you  can,  and  improve  your 
minds,  and  I  will  do  what  I  can  to  help  you  along. 

My  dear  children,  live  close  to  God  in  prayer ;  put  your 
trust  in  him,  pray  often  in  secret ;  read  your  Bible  on'  your 
knees  in  secret ;  pray  for  me. 

I  would  write  more,  but  have  not  time ;  the  stage  waits  to 
take  me  to  Robbinston  and  Calais,  and  I  must  close.  I  have 
not  received  any  news  from  Baltimore  since  I  left  in  the 
spring. 

Drop  a  line  to  your  mother  immediately  upon  the  receipt  of 
this  ;  do  not  neglect.  My  respects  to  all  the  friends  in  Wilbra- 
ham. 

Receive  the  affections  of  your  father, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins  continued  his  journey  into  the  Prov- 
inces of  New  Brunswick  and  Nova  Scotia.  Every- 
where he  lectured  to  crowded  houses.  His  reputation 
had  preceded  him,  and  there  was  no  difficulty  in  bring- 
ing out  large  masses  of  people  to  hear  him.  As  the 
reform  progressed,  and  the  traffic  in  intoxicating  drinks 
was  everywhere  falling  off,  its  supporters  resorted  to 
every  species  of  annoyance  that  malice  and  self-interest 
could  invent  to  render  his  position  uncomfortable ;  they 
exerted  themselves  to  the  utmost  to  throw  ridicule  upon 
the  new  movement  and  its  advocates.  But  the  intre- 
pidity which  he  always  evinced,  emboldened  the  friends 
of  temperance  to  make  vigorous  assaults  in  return  upon 
the  enemy's  entrenchments.  It  is  not  surprising  that  in 
the  fury  of  those  assaults,  and  under  the  heavy  blows 
dealt  by  him  upon  his  opponents,  some  were  offended 
whom  he  never  designed  to  harm.  But  he  felt  that  he 


LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.   W.    HAWKINS.  281 

was  fighting  for  the  feeble  and  the  oppressed,  and  he 
seldom  paused  to  ask  who  the  oppressor  was,  or  what 
was  the  position  he  held  in  society.  "  That  noble  war- 
rior, John  Hawkins,"  says  Dr.  Marsh,  "  is  doing  great 
things  in  Maine." 

During  Mr.  Hawkins'  sojourn  in  New  Brunswick, 
papers  reached  Boston,  speaking  in  terms  of  high  com- 
mendation of  his  labors  there.  The  St.  Stephens 
Courant,  of  October  10th,  stated  that  "  Mr.  Hawkins 
addressed  a  large  and  most  attentive  audience  at  Mid- 
dletown,  on  the  all-important  subject  of  temperance, 
and  in  the  Methodist  Chapel  at  Saltwater;  and  equally 
large  and  attentive  assemblages  at  the  Upper  Mills, 
Oak  Bay,  and  the  Ledge.  The  earnest  and  touching 
manner  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  and  his  true  description  of 
the  '  drunkard's  progress,'  have  no  doubt  made  a  lasting 
Impression  upon  the  minds  of  his  hearers.  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins was  to  hold  meetings  at  St.  George,  St.  Andrews, 
and  St.  Stephen." 

The  result  of  these  efforts  was  the  formation  of  vig- 
orous and  influential  societies  in  all  these  places. 
"  After  lecturing  three  days  in  St.  John,"  he  says  in 
his  journal,  "  took  steamboat,  but  concluded  to  put  into 
Portland,  Me.,  and  deliver  a  lecture  there  by  request 
of  friends.  October  28th  took  the  cars  for  Boston; 
reached  that  city  on  the  31st,  and  rested  until  the 
18th  day  of  November." 

On  the  third  of  November  he  thus  writes  to  his  son 

at  Wilbraham :  — 

BOSTON,  Nov.  3,  1843. 

Mv  DKAU  SON,  —  I  have  at  last  returned  from  my  tour 
"  Down  East,"  ami  tliroiiirh  the  Province  of  New  Brunswick, 
in  good  health.  I  send  you,  your  sister?,  and  Arthur,  each  a 


24* 


282  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

handsomely  bound  volume  of  the  last  will  and  testament  of  our 
blessed  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  hoping  that  you  will 
take  it  as  the  rule  and  guide  of  your  faith  and  practice  ;  for  it 
alone  points  out  the  way  of  life  here,  and  will  prepare  you  for 
a  full  enjoyment  of  that  which  is  to  come.  I  hope  I  need  not 
say  to  you  all,  pray  much,  and  pray  for  me  and  the  family.  I 
have  reason  to  hope  we  are  not  neglected.  My  dear  chil- 
dren, I  feel  much  the  want  of  the  sustaining  grace  of  God, 
to  strengthen  and  keep  me  through  my  arduous  labors.  I  am 
now  about  to  take  a  long  and  laborious  journey  through  the 
South ;  first  to  Charleston,  S.  C.,  thence  to  Mobile,  thence  to 
New  Orleans,  and  return  in  the  spring ;  and  then  I  may  go  to 
London,  to  attend  the  World's  Temperance  Convention.  I 
shall  leave  here  for  the  South  this  month.  I  have  not  made 
up  my  mind  as  to  the  day,  but  wish  you  to  hold  yourself  in 
readiness  to  go  to  Baltimore  in  company  with  me,  for  I  think 
I  shall  leave  here  for  Wilbraham  on  the  morning  of  the  22d 
inst.,  which  is  the  day  of  vacation ;  you  will  therefore  be 
ready  to  go  with  me  on  the  23d.  When  I  get  to  Wilbraham 
we  will  talk  over  matters  and  things  in  general  in  regard  to 
your  sisters'  future  movements,  etc.  I  saw  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Adams  *  the  other  day ;  he  looks  badly,  but  says  he  feels  that 
he  is  getting  stronger  every  day.  He  said  to  me  that  there  was 
a  boy  at  the  institution  whose  influence  over  Arthur  was  not 
good.  Have  you  looked  into  it  ?  My  dependence  is  on  you  to 
see  what  influences  are  brought  to  bear  on  that  boy ;  don't 
neglect  it,  but  keep  a  close  eye  upon  him.  You  may  expect 
me  on  the  22d  Nov.  I  have  nothing  more  to  say  at  present. 
Your  father,  affectionately,  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  the  19th  of  November  Mr.  Hawkins  delivered  a 
parting  address  to  his  friends  in  Boston,  in  Warren 

*  The  Rev.  Charles  Adams,  at  that  time  Principal  of  Wilbraham 
Academy ;  a  gentleman  much  beloved  and  respected  by  his  pupils.  He 
was  just  recovering  from  a  severe  illness. 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  283 

Street  Chapel.  On  his  way  to  New  York  he  lectured  in 
Monson  and  New  Worcester.  Remaining  one  day  in 
New  York  *  to  lecture,  he  took  the  steamboat  and  cars 
for  Baltimore.  There  he  lectured  once  in  the  Light 
Street  Methodist  Church,  and  spending  one  day  only 
with  his  aged  mother  and  relatives,  on  the  28th  of 
November  he  took  the  steamboat  for  Norfolk,  thence  by 
way  of  Wilmington,  N.  C.,  and  arrived  in  Charleston 
on  the  2d  of  December.  He  commenced  his  labors  on 
the  4th  of  December  in  the  Temperance  Hall,  under 
most  favorable  circumstances.  The  Charleston  papers, 
in  their  notices  of  him  and  his  labors,  say  that  his 
power  over  the  people  was  unbounded  ;  that  laying  no 
claim  to  education,  he  touched  the  deepest  chords  of 
the  heart ;  the  manly  and  the  delicate,  the  old  and  the 
young,  were  alike  moved  to  tears.  He  continued  to 
labor  day  and  night  in  Charleston  until  the  13th  of  Jan- 
uary ;  we  refer  to  his  letters  for  details.  On  the  llth 
he  wrote  thus  to  his  son,  then  at  Baltimore. 

CHARLESTON,  S.  C.,  Jan.  11,  1844. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  embrace  the  present  private  opportunity 
of  dropping  you  a  line,  which  will  inform  you  that  I  am  in  most 
excellent  health. 

You  will  be  somewhat  surprised  when  I  tell  you  that  such 

*  While  in  New  York  Mr.  Hawkins  called  upon  his  friend  Dr.  Marsh, 
who  thus  makes  mention  of  the  call  in  his  Journal  for  December,  1843  :  — 

"  Our  noble  fellow-laborer,  J.  H.  W.  Hawkins,  has  just  called  upon  us, 
on  his  way  from  the  eastward  to  Charleston,  Mobile,  New  Orleans,  and 
St.  Louis,  etc.,  where  he  is  to  labor  in  the  good  cause.  The  archers  have 
shot  at  him  at  the  East,  chiefly  because  of  his  determination  to  give  God 
the  glory  of  his  reformation,  and  for  his  boldness  in  warning  rum-sellers, 
rum-drinkers,  and  drunkards  against  the  solemn  retributions  of  eternity  ; 
what  they  are  pleased  to  call  sectarianism.  But  he  well  knows  what  he 
is  about." 


284  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

is  the  mildness  of  this  climate,  that  I  have  not  seen  a  particle 
of  snow  or  ice  this  winter,  and  have  had  no  use  for  a  cloak ; 
and  while  I  am  sitting  in  my  room  writing,  there  is  no  more 
need  of  fire  than  in  midsummer. 

The  quarters  provided  for  me  by  the  temperance  society 
are  at  the  Planters'  Hotel,  in  the  most  retired  part  of  the  house. 
The  family  receive  me  as  one  of  their  own.  It  is  kept  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Myott ;  they  treat  me  with  great  kindness  ;  this 
makes  it  very  pleasant.  They  attend  all  my  lectures,  and  are 
as  much  pleased  as  the  public  at  large ;  I  seem  to  give  general 
satisfaction,  which  to  me  is  a  great  source  of  pleasure.  I  have 
had  unbounded  success  in  this  city  and  at  the  capital  of  the 
State,  Columbia. 

The  mayor  of  this  city  and  the  other  officers  of  the  city  gov- 
ernment have  afforded  me  every  facility  for  prosecuting  my 
work,  that  could  have  been  expected.  I  cannot  go  into  a  detail 
of  my  mode  of  operations ;  suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  first  thing  in 
the  morning,  after  breakfast,  I  repair  to  the  "  Mayor's  Court," 
where  the  drunkards  taken  by  the  guard  the  previous  night  are 
brought ;  some  of  them  who  are  not  so  bad  are  then  permitted 
to  go  ;  i.  e.,  after  they  have  signed  the  pledge.  The  other?, 
the  worst,  are  sent  to  the  poorhouse,  a  kind  of  workhouse  and 
prison.  I  visit  them  every  day,  talk  to  them,  encourage  them, 
&c.  They  are  kept  there  subject  to  my  order ;  that  is,  until  I 
think  they  are  in  a  state  to  be  discharged. 

I  have  also  visited  a  great  many  families  who  have  sent  for 
me,  to  talk  to  the  father,  husband,  brother,  or  son,  as  the  case 
may  be,  and,  with  a  few  exceptions,  I  have  been  successful,  and 
have  witnessed  several  very  interesting  cases. 

I  have  given  up  the  idea  of  going  to  New  Orleans  and  re- 
turning home  by  the  West,  on  account  of  my  services  being  so 
much  needed  in  this  section  of  the  country  ;  and  another  reason 
is,  that  it  would  keep  me  too  long  from  my  family.  I  do  not 
know  precisely  what  time  I  shall  be  able  to  return  ;  I  think  I 
shall  remain  no  longer  than  the  last  of  March.  It  would  not 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  285 

be  advisable  for  you  to  return  now,  as  I  wish  you  to  enter  col- 
lege this  spring,  and  hope  you  are  so  improving  yourself  that 
you  will  be  fully  qualified  to  enter.  You  should  not  let  a  mo- 
ment escape ;  be  diligent  in  your  studies.  I  wish  you  could 
feel  the  great  need  of  an  education  as  your  unworthy  father 
feels  it,  situated  as  he  is  before  the  public ;  then  I  am  sure  you 
would  be  diligent,  Do  not  think  that  I  suppose  you  are  not ; 
oh,  no  ;  I  would  not  discourage  you. 

I  cannot  close  without  thanking  God  for  what  he  has  done 
for  me,  for  you,  for  all  the  family.  He  has  done  great  things 
for  us,  for  which  we  have  great  cause  to  rejoice.  Oh,  let  us 
put  our  trust  in  him,  "  for  his  mercy  endureth  forever."  Be 
often  found  in  secret  with  your  Bible,  and  remember  that  "  He 
that  seeth  in  secret  will  reward  you  openly." 

Tell  your  Aunt  Frances  this  must  at  present  answer  for  the 
letter  I  promised  to  write  her ;  she  shall  hear  from  me  when  I 
go  to  Savannah ;  I  am  engaged  there  for  one  month.  To-mor- 
row evening,  Thursday,  I  take  steamer  for  Georgetown,  in  this 
State,  to  spend  a  few  days.  I  then  return  to  Charleston,  take 
the  railroad  for  Augusta,  Ga.,  and  some  other  places.  Feb. 
6th  return  again  to  Charleston  to  attend  the  State  Convention, 
then  take  the  steamer  for  Savannah,  to  fill  some  engagements 
there.  I  then  think  of  returning  to  Baltimore. 

I  forgot  to  mention,  we  have  had  one  of  the  largest  temper- 
ance "  tea-parties "  I  ever  attended.  It  was  on  the  1st  of 
January.  More  than  nine  hundred  tickets  were  sold,  and  the 
proceeds,  after  the  expenses  were  paid,  amounted  to  over  two 
hundred  dollars ;  pretty  good  for  the  first  ever  held  in  this  city. 
It  excited  a  great  deal  of  curiosity,  and  they  say  we  must  have 
another. 

When  I  return  from  Georgetown  I  shall  expect  to  receive  an 
answer  to  this.  JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Of  his  visit  to  Columbia,  the  capital  of  the  State, 
and  the  impression  produced  there,  his  friend  in  the 


286  LIFE   OF   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

good  cause,  Judge  O'Neale,  thus  writes  to  the  editor 
of  the  Charleston  Courier ;  this  letter  was  copied  into 
a  number  of  papers  in  the  Northern  and  Southern 
States : — 

COLUMBIA,  Dec.  17th,  1843. 

MY  DEAK  SIR,  —  Mr.  Hawkins'  visit  to  this  town  has  been 
to  me  a  source  of  inexpressible  delight.  He  speaks  like  one 
who  has  felt  and  tasted  in  his  reformation  that  God  was  (as 
he  is)  good,  and  as  merciful  as  he  is  just.  He  blends,  as  I 
think  most  properly,  sublime  views  of  Christian  duty  with  the 
practical  results  of  the  temperance  reform.  In  every  point  of 
vieAV  he  is  calculated  to  do  good  ;  and  I  wish  that  all  our  people 
in  South  Carolina  could  hear  him,  and  mingle  their  tears  with 
his  as  he  recounts  the  story  of  shame  and  bitterness  which  he 
has  experienced. 

His  visit  to  Columbia,  although  at  a  time  when  the  business 
of  the  Legislature  is  rushing  to  a  close,  and  when  attention  is 
too  much  riveted  upon  it  to  be  attracted  elsewhere,  has  been 
productive  of  much  good.  The  night  he  reached  Columbia, 
the  notice  was  too  short  to  permit  information  to  be  given  so 
as  to  call  out  the  town.  A  few,  however,  met  on  Thursday 
night  in  the  Methodist  Church,  which,  with  a  characteristic 
liberality,  was  thrown  open  to  our  use.  Mr.  Hawkins  was 
barely  introduced,  and  made  a  few  plain  but  intelligent  prac- 
tical remarks.  The  church  was  kindly  offered  for  Friday 
night,  when  a  respectable  audience  assembled ;  and  I  am  sure 
never  were  people  more  delighted  with  any  address  than  they 
were  with  the  plain,  simple,  artless  tale  of  suffering,  shame,  and 
remorse  which  Mr.  Hawkins  has  experienced.  His  description 
of  his  noble  daughter's  heroic  effort  to  save  him  from  a  drunk- 
ard's grave,  did  not  leave  a  dry  eye  in  the  house. 

For  Saturday  night  the  Presbyterian  Church  was  offered. 
Here,  again,  another  portion  of  the  people  of  Columbia  was 
met,  and  before  them  he  reasoned  of  righteousness,  temperance, 
and  judgment  to  come.  He  pointed  the  reform  to  its  legitimate 


LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWEJNS.  287 

result,  the  reformation  of  the  drunkard  for  time,  and  his  prep- 
aration for  everlasting  salvation.  The  Legislature  (that  is,  the 
House  of  Representatives),  at  his  request,  unanimously  gave 
the  use  of  their  hall  for  a  lecture  on  Sunday  night ;  the  even- 
ing was  rainy,  and  therefore  a  comparatively  thin  house  at- 
tended. Notwithstanding  these  unfavorable  circumstances,  Mr. 
Hawkins  made  one  of  his  happiest  efforts,  and  the  representa- 
tives of  the  people  who  heard  him  will  often  speak  of  it  as  one 
of  the  pleasantest  and  most  instructive  Sabbath  evenings  they 
ever  passed  in  Columbia.  He  successfully  vindicated  Sabbath 
evening  meetings  for  the  discussion  of  temperance,  and  showed, 
if  they  were  properly  conducted,  how  much  good  to  religion 
would  be  thereby  accomplished.  He  painted  with  a  master's 
hand  the  wretched  degradation  of  the  drunkard,  and  wound 
up  with  a  thrilling  chapter  from  his  own  life  and  sufferings  and 
reform.  He  leaves  here  in  the  morning  for  your  noble  city. 
He  will  be  with  you  before  this  reaches  you.  May  God  speed 
and  bless  him  on  his  errand  of  love  and  mercy. 

The  Temperance  Convention  will  assemble  in  your  city  on 
the  first  Tuesday  in  February.  Before  I  leave  here,  I  will, 
through  the  Advocate,  call  the  attention  of  the  friends  of  tem- 
perance to  it,  and  request  the  societies  to  appoint  their  dele- 
gates. Most  sincerely,  your  friend, 

JOHN  BEI.TON  O'NEALE. 

At  the  earnest  desire  of  the  friends  of  temperance 
Mr.  Hawkins  spent  over  twenty  days  in  visiting  some1. 
of  the  interior  towns  and  cities  of  South  Carolina  and 
a  few  places  in  Georgia.  On  the  15th,  16th,  17th,  and 
18th  of  January  he  lectured  to  good  audiences  in  George- 
town; returning  to  Charleston  on  the  19th,  he  re- 
mained there  until  the  23d.  The  24th  and  25th  he 
spent  in  Augusta,  the  27th  in  Hamburg,  and  the  28th 
in  Athens ;  thence  he  returned  to  Augusta,  and  re- 


288  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

mained  until  February  2d.  On  the  3d  he  was  again 
at  Hamburg,  and  on  the  4th  at  Aiken. 

He  arrived  at  Charleston,  from  Aiken,  on  the  6th 
of  February,  the  day  appointed  for  the  meeting  of  the 
State  Temperance  Convention.  Never  before  was 
there  so  large  a  gathering  of  temperance  men  and 
women  in  that  city.  Almost  every  district  sent  up  its 
delegation.  On  the  first  day  over  seventy  delegates 
were  present ;  the  number  was  considerably  increased 
on  the  second  day. 

The  Convention  assembled  at  10  A.M.,  in  the  Wash- 
ington Temperance  Hall.  The  President  of  the  State 
Temperance  Society,  Hon.  John  Belton  O'Neale,  being 
absent,  from  indisposition,  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Backman, 
one  of  the  Vice  Presidents  was  called  to  the  chair ; 
Henry  A.  Meetze  and  J.  D.  Yates  were  appointed  Sec- 
retaries. The  aid  of  Divine  Providence  was  invoked 
by  Rev.  Dr.  Leland.  After  the  calling  of  the  roll  and 
the  appointment  of  several  committees,  the  Convention 
adjourned  to  half  past  three  o'clock.  The  chairman  of 
the  committee  on  preparing  business  reported  the  fol- 
lowing subjects  as  worthy  of  special  attention :  — 

1.  That  an  address  be  made  to  the  importers  of  spir- 
ituous liquors. 

2.  The  subject  of  the  "  Temperance  Advocate" 

3.  The  propriety  of  employing  temperance  lecturers 
to  labor  in  the  cause  throughout  the  State. 

4.  Seamen's  Memorial  to  Congress  for  the  abolition 
of  the  spirit-ration  in  the  navy. 

5.  Address  to  military  men. 

6.  To  take  measures  for  a  National  Temperance 
Convention. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  289 

On  motion  of  W.  Y.  Leith,  Mr.  Hawkins  was  in- 
vited to  take  a  seat  in  the  Convention  and  to  participate 
in  its  deliberations. 

The  memorial  to  Congress  on  the  subject  of  the 
spirit-ration  in  the  navy  was  earnest,  reasonable,  kind, 
and  convincing.  It  asserted  that  the  time  had  fully 
come  when  this  relic  of  the  age  of  folly  and  of  mistaken 
kindness  should  be  utterly  removed.  The  address  to 
importers  and  dealers  was  comprehensive  and  respect- 
ful. On  motion  of  Mr.  Hawkins  it  was  resolved  that 
the  address  be  printed  in  letter  form  and  addressed  to 
the  different  importers  and  wholesale  dealers  in  intoxi- 
cating liquors  throughout  the  State. 

On  the  second  day  the  Hon.  Mr  O'Neale  appeared 
and  took  his  seat  as  President  of  the  Convention.  On 
Thursday,  the  8th,  a  large  amount  of  business  was 
transacted  by  the  Convention,  which  the  limits  of  this 
work  will  not  permit  us  to  notice.  We  find  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins' name  frequently  mentioned  in  the  minutes  of  pro- 
ceedings and  as  a  member  of  several  business  commit- 
tees. These  particulars  are  drawn  from  the  printed 
report  of  the  Convention,  and  the  temperance  papers 
of  the  day.*  Many  incidents  of  stirring  interest  oc- 

*  See  Proceedings  of  the  State  Temperance  Convention  held  in  Charles- 
ton, S.  C.,  February  6,  1843.  Issued  from  the  press  of  the  Temperance 
Advocate,  Columbia,  S.  C.  Letter  from  a  Correspondent  of  the  Ameri- 
can Temperance  Union  :  -  u  CHARLESTON,  Feb.  8,  1844. 

"  MR.  MARSH  :  Sir,  —  I  little  thought  when  I  promised  you  a  letter,  to 
have  so  much  news  of  a  temperance  character  to  communicate.  •  Having 
been  favored  with  a  quick  and  pleasant  passage  out,  I  arrived  in  time  to 
listen  to  (I  had  almost  said  participate  in)  the  deliberations  of  the  South- 
Carolina  Temperance  Convention  during  the  last  two  days  of  its  session , 
and  to  attend,  on  the  evening  of  the  seventh,  the  second  Anniversary  of 
the  Marine  Washington  Total  Abstinence  Society  of  the  port  of  Charles- 


ton. 

25 


290  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

curred  during  the  sittings  of  the  Convention ;  we  can- 

"  The  Convention  Assembled  in  Temperance  Hall  (which  permit  me 
to  remark  is  the  best  arranged  hall  I  have  yet  seen),  with  upwards  of  sev- 
enty delegates  present  at  its  first  session.  This  number  was  considerably 
increased  on  the  second  day,  and  I  rejoice  at  having  been  permitted  to  see 
so  rnucli  of  the  moral  worth  of  South  Carolina  assembled  in  behalf  of 
temperance,  as  I  there  saw  embodied.  I  will  not  pretend  even  to  give  you 
a  synopsis  of  the  business  transacted  by  the  Convention,  but  merely  a 
wayfarer's  impressions  relative  to  the  men  there  convened  and  the  princi- 
ples advocated.  I  will  endeavor  to  send  you  copies  of  the  Courier  con- 
taining the  resolutions  and  addresses  passed  at  the  meeting.  I  think 
you  will  be  pleased  at  the  action  of  the  Convention  in  favor  of  the  Sea- 
rnens'  Memorial ;  some  of  the  members  mystified  themselves  considera- 
bly as  to  the  propriety  of  such  action  ;  but  after  a  spirited  debate,  it  was 
carried  with  but  two  dissenting  voices,  that  I  could  hear. 

"  The  address  to  importers  and  wholesale  dealers  in  spirituous  liquors, 
.is  a  manly,  respectful  remonstrance,  and  I  envy  not  the  dealer  whose 
conscience  it  fails  to  awaken.    It  seems  rather  invidious  to  particular- 
ize any  addresses,  when  there  were  others,  both  excellent  and  appro- 
priate. 

"  Mr.  J.  H.  W.  Hawkins  was  present,  and  took  part  in  the  meeting. 
He  was  listened  to  with  attention,  and  from  what  I  can  hear,  he  has  won 
many  warm-hearted  friends  during  his  sojourn. 

"Judge  O'Neale's  closing  speech  in  the  Convention  was  admirable, 
most  admirable ;  —  surely  none  of  those  picked  men  of  the  temperance 
army  who  listened  to  him,  can  fail  of  carrying  to  their  homes  a  holy 
leaven  that  shall  work  out  its  own  blessed  reward. 

"  At  the  Anniversary  of  the  Marine  Washington  Total  Abstinence  So- 
ciety, a  procession  of  the  members  and  officers  of  the  society  then  in  port 
was  formed  at  the  Mariner's  Church,  bearing  flags,  banners,  transparen- 
cies, glass  lanterns,  &c.,  accompanied  by  a  band  of  music,  and  marched 
through  part  of  the  city,  up  to  the  theatre,  which  was  ornamented  for 
their  reception.  The  night  being  dark,  the  procession  presented  a  pic- 
turesque and  imposing  spectacle,  and  the  interior  of  the  theatre  during 
the  services  of  the  evening  was  no  less  interesting.  In  the  back-ground 
were  seated  the  delegates  to  the  Convention  ;  in  front  of  them,  the  offi 
cers  of  the  society  and  the  speakers ;  between  these  and  the  audience  in 
the  pit  were  placed  a  minature  seventy-four,  and  a  model  -of  the  revenue 
cutter,  Van  Buren,  now  in  Charleston  harbor  (whose  officers  and  crew 
are  all  members  of  the  society,  and,  with  the  exception  of  the  comple- 
ment necessary  to  take  care  of  the  vessel,  were  all  present).  Beautiful 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

not  refrain*  from  alluding  to  one.  There  was  consider- 
able debate  on  the  subject  of  the  Seamen's  Memorial, 
and  for  a  time  some  doubt  was  expressed  as  to  its 
passage ;  but  it  was  finally  adopted  by  a  large  ma- 
jority, there  being  but  two  dissenting  voices.  A  sailors 
wife  who  was  present,  and  listened  to  the  proceedings, 
wrote  the  following  sonnet;  it  was  handed  to  the 
President,  who  read  it  to  the  Convention,  and  it  was 
'ordered  to  be  printed. 

"  SONNET. 

'DEDICATED  TO  THE  GENTLEMEN  WHO  ADVOCATED  THE  ADOPTION 
OF  THE  RESOLUTION  IN  FAVOR  OP  THE  SAILOR'S  MEMORIAL  TO 
CONGRESS. 

"  Thanks,  deep  and  fervent  thanks,  my  soul  would  breathe, 

To  those  who  nobly  seconded  the  prayer, 
The  sons  of  Ocean  raise  to  be  relieved 

From  the  last  vestige  of  a  legal  snare. 
Thanks,  noble-hearted  men  !  a  sailor's  wife 

Listened  with  beating  heart  to  each  appeal, 
Grew  pale  with  doubt,  lest  in  the  wordy  strife, 

Landsmen  should  cease  for  sailor's  wrongs  to  feel ; 
Lest  Carolina's  temperance  host  should  be 

Neutral  —  while  sailors  battled  to  be  free . 

women  and  intelligent-looking  men  were  seated  indiscriminately  on  the 
flooring  of  the  pit,  and  in  the  first  tier  of  boxes  were  the  sailors  who  had 
identified  themselves  with  the  society.  The  coup  d'ceil  was  really 
striking. 

"  Judge  O'Nealc,  Rev.  Mr.  Culpeppcr,  and  Rev.  Mr.  Yates  addressed 
the  meeting.  To  say  their  remarks  were  eloquent  is  but  reiterating  what 
the  names  avow.  Rev.  Mr.  Yatcs,  as  Secretary  of  the  society,  gave  an 
interesting  account  of  their  present  condition.  He  says  that  they  have  on 
their  pledge-book  two  thousand  and  six  members,  one  thousand  five  hun- 
dred of  whom  are  seamen  !  He  also  stated  that  since  last  June,  ninety 
men  on  board  the  revenue  cutter,  Van  Buren,  have  signed  the  pledge, 
and  kept  it.  It  rejoiced  my  very  soul  to  sec  those  officers  present  on  the 
stage.  They  certainly  have  set  a  noble  example  ;  God  increase  the  num- 
ber of  such  men  in  the  service.  •"-•  ^'  **. 


292  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Oh  !  may  this  sanction  of  the  "  proud  palm  "  speak, 

In  tones  commanding  the  whole  nation's  will, 
Till  sailors  win  the  just  reward  they  seek, 

Eansomed,  delivered,  from  each  legal  ill." 

On  the  day  succeeding  the  adjournment  of  the  Con- 
vention Mr.  Hawkins  addressed  a  brief  note  to  his  son, 
saying,— 

I  have  this  day  received  a  letter  from  Deacon  Grant ;  he 
writes  that  they  are  all  well  in  Boston.  As  regards  my  own 
health,  it  was  never  better.  I  leave  to-morrow  in  the  steamer 
for  Savannah,  Ga.,  where  I  expect  to  labor  by  special  invita- 
tion for  about  one  month,  and  then  I  propose  commencing  my 
journey  homeward  through  North  Carolina,  Virginia,  &c.  I 
have  nothing  special  to  write  you,  only,  that  I  meet  with  as 
much  success  as  I  could  wish. 

On  reaching  Savannah,  Mr.  Hawkins  found  time  to 
prepare  a  fuller  account  of  his  operations  than  he  had 
thus  far  been  able  to  transmit  to  his  northern  friends. 
It  is  contained  in  a  letter  to  Rev.  Dr.  Marsh.  It  was 
deemed  by  him  to  be  of  sufficient  interest  to  lay  before 
the  public,  and  the  letter  was  accordingly  published  in 
the  March  number  of  the  American  Temperance  Jour- 
nal. The  circumstances  attending  his  visit  to  the  in- 
ebriates confined  in  the  city  prison,  and  their  release, 
were  published  in  the  Charleston  papers. 

Says  Rev.  Dr.  Marsh,  — 

The  labors  of  our  friend  Mr.  Hawkins  are  proving,  we  are 
happy  to  say,  very  efficient  and  acceptable  at  the  South.  We 
received  a  letter  from  him  some  time  since,  in  which  he  ex- 
pressed great  gratitude  for  the  manner  in  which  he  had  been 
received  in  Charleston,  especially  by  the  mayor,  who  had  taken 
him  by  the  hand,  welcomed  him  to  the  city,  and  made  over  to 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 


293 


him  all  the  wretched  inebriates  who  were  then,  for  drunken- 
ness, confined  in  the  prison,  with  the  promise  of  their  deliver- 
ance, whenever  Mr.  Hawkins  should  report  them  reformed. 
On  entering  the  prison  he  found  one  interesting  young  man 
who  had  been  confined  more  than  fifty  days  for  drunkenness, 
on  bread  and  water,  with  a  filthy  bed,  and  almost  fireless.  Mr. 
Hawkins  told  him  that  he  had  been  a  drunkard.  "  Then,"  said 
the  young  man,  "  you  know  how  to  feel  for  me."  They  wept  over 
each  other.  On  a  set  day  he,  with  twenty  others,  listened  to  a 


temperance  address  from  Mr.  Hawkins.   All  signed  the  pledge, 
nnd  the  prison  doors,  at  the  order  of  the  mayor,  were  thrown 
open  to  them.     Mr.  Hawkins  expressed  a  deep  sense  of  grat  i- 
tude  to  God  for  his  own  reformation,  and  his  dependence  upon 
him  for  success  in   his  great  work.      With  these  views  ami 
feelings  he  caimol  fail  of  being  a  Messing  wherever  lie  goes. 
The  following  letter  lias  just  been  received  from  him:  — 
25* 


294  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

SAVANNAH,  Geo.  Feb.  19,  1844. 

"RESPECTED  FRIEND,  —  Your  very  kind  letter  dated  Feb. 
2d,  has  been  duly  received.  You  rejoice  that  I  came  South ;  in- 
deed I  have  great  cause  to  rejoice  also,  and  that  my  feeble  ef- 
forts, under  the  guidance  of  my  heavenly  Father,  have  been 
so  wonderfully  and  powerfully  blessed.  The  late  State  Tem- 
perance Convention  in  Charleston  was  one  of  the  most  import- 
ant meetings  I  ever  attended.  The  measures  adopted  there,  if 
carried  out,  will  tend  so  to  revolutionize  the  State,  that  it  will 
place  her  alongside  of  good  old  Massachusetts.  The  cause  of 
temperance,  while  it  has  for  a  leader  such  a  man  as  B.  J.  How- 
land,  and  the  State  such  a  noble  philanthropist  and  advocate  as 
Judge  J.  B.  O'Neale,  has  nothing  to  fear. 

"The  Marine  Washington  Total  Abstinence  Society,  of 
Charleston,  has  done  wonders.  It  was  formed  February  4, 
1842,  and  now  numbers  considerably  over  two  thousand,  and 
is  still  on  the  increase.  The  past  year  over  one  thousand  have 
signed  the  pledge.  The  Rev.  Wm.  B.  Yates,  pastor  of  the  Sea- 
men's Bethel  and  Secretary  of  the  society,  informed  me  that  not 
over  six  had  been  known  to  have  broken  their  pledge.  There 
are  in  this  port  about  twenty-six  pilots,  twenty-two  of  whom 
have  signed  the  pledge.  He  says  it  is  impossible  to  arrive  at 
the  amount  of  money  saved  by  the  seamen  and  pilots,  by  then 
signing  the  pledge. 

"The  work  has  progressed  on  board  the  revenue  cutter  Van 
Buren,  wonderfully.  The  captain,  the  first,  and  third  lieuten- 
ant are  pledged  men,  with  her  entire  crew,  and  only  one  has 
been  known  to  have  broken  his  pledge.  One  of  her  officers 
told  the  Rev.  Mr.  Yates,  that  out  of  ninety  men  who  had  signed 
the  pledge  since  last  June,  only  two  have  been  known  to  vio- 
late it.  In  fact,  such  has  been  the  work  among  the  seamen 
in  this  port,  that  several  captains  and  officers  with  their  entire 
crew  have  come  forward  and  signed  the  pledge. 

"  I  have  never  visited  a  place  in  all  my  travels  where  the 
people  have  taken  hold  of  the  subject  of  temperance  as  they 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  295 

have  here  in  Savannah.     Before  my  arrival  they  had  done  but 
little ;  and  when  I  arrived,  the  friends  of  temperance  told  me 
that  I  had  a  hard  place  to  operate  upon,  and  to  the  utter  as- 
tonishment of  every  one,  the  house  was  filled  to  overflowing ; 
many  had  to  go  away  ;  they  could  not  get  in.     It  was  just  such 
a  meeting  as  the  first,  you  remember,  we  held  in   New  York, 
in  March,  1841,  when  poor  Latham  cried  out, '  Can  I  be  saved  ? 
is  there  any  hope  for  me?'  The  next  meeting  was  held  in  the 
Methodist  Church,  a  larger  place  ;  that  was  crowded  to  excess  ; 
and  oh !  what  a  time  it  was  !  scarcely  a  dry  eye  in  the  house. 
One  hundred  and  thirty  signed  the  pledge.     The  next  meeting 
was  held  in  the  Mariner's  Church ;  the  number  that  signed  there 
made  over  two  hundred  in  three  nights.     Ought  I  to  be  dis- 
couraged at  such  results  as  these  ?     No  !   I  have  never  been 
discouraged  for  a  moment  since,  in  the  providence  of  God,  I  have 
been  called  to  this  work.     I  now  look  back  with  astonishment, 
and  am  compelled  to  say,  'Truly,  this  is  the  work  of  the  Lord, 
and  marvellous  in  our  eyes.'     I  shall  remain  in  Savannah  till 
about  the  last  of  this  month;  and  I  think   by  that  time,  with 
the  aid  of  such  men  as  have  and  will  sign  the  pledge,  we  shall 
route  the  enemy,  horse,   foot,  and  dragoons.     I  shall  not  at 
present  go  to  New  Orleans  as  I  contemplated,  on  account  of  the 
health  of  Mrs.  Hawkins.  When  I  finish  my  engagement  at  Sa- 
vannah, I  contemplate  visiting  Macon  and  Milledgeville,  then  re- 
turn to  Charleston.     Returning  home,  I  contemplate    spending 
a  few  days  at  the  following  places,  viz  ;  Wilmington,  Fayette- 
ville,  Raleigh,  N.  C.,  and  Petersburg,  Richmond,  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va.,  Washington,  and  so  on,  home  to  Boston." 

At  the  same  date  of  the  foregoing  letter  to  Dr.  Marsh, 

he  wrote  to  his  son  as  follows :  — 

• 

SAVANNAH,  Ga.,  Feb.  19,  18-14. 

Mr  DEAR  SON,  — Your  letter  dated   February   12th  has 
been  duly  received.     I  was  glad  to  hear  from  you,  and  much 


296  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

pleased  with  your  sister's  letter.  I  received  a  letter  From  Mr. 
Spooner  dated  Boston,  Feb.  8th.  He  states  that  your  mother 
has  been  very  sick,  but  is  getting  better.  I  have  nothing 
special  to  write  except  that  the  cause  of  temperance  is  making 
a  tremendous  excitement  in  this  place  ;  they  had  done  very 
little  previous  to  my  coming.  It  would  be  impossible  for  me 
to  give  you  an  adequate  description  of  the  interest  which  is  felt 
here.  The  people  seem  amazed  ;  such  crowded  houses  I  have 
seldom  witnessed  anywhere  ;  the  high,  the  low,  the  rich,  and 
poor,  alike  flock  to  the  churches  long  before  the  hour  of  meet- 
ing. Over  two  hundred  signed  the  pledge  at  two  meetings, 
many  of  them  poor  unfortunate  drunkards,  and  the  people  take 
notice  of  them  and  have  given  them  employment ;  this  is  as  it 
should  be.  I  really  suppose  there  will  be  a  greater  revolution 
in  this  place  than  in  any  other  that  I  have  ever  visited.  The 
talk  is  from  morning  until  night,  temperance,  temperance ;  and  in 
the  taverns  and  grog-shops  they  talk  it  until  long  after  midnight. 
A  tremendous  blow  has  been  struck  at  the  sailor  boarding- 
houses,  that  have  long  been  the  ruin  of  the  poor  sailors  of  this 
port.  Several  have  been  put  into  jail  to  await  their  trial  for 
stealing  sailors  from  on  board  the  ships,  getting  them  drunk,  and 
then  robbing  them  of  every  farthing.  Eemember  me  to  every- 
body. 

*  *  *  I  thought  you  might  call  on  Christian  Keener  and 
give  him  a  portion  of  the  above  relating  to  the  work  here,  for 
publication,  if  he  thinks  it  worthy ;  that  is,  you  can  copy  it  and 
hand  it  to  him.  Write  me  before  you  leave  Baltimore;  don't 
forget ;  direct  to  Savannah. 

•  Your  father,  JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

The  labors  of  Mr.  Hawkins  in  Savannah  and  its 
neighboring  towns  during  the  month  he  spent  there 
were  productive  of  great  good.  He  was  engaged,  as 
appears  from  his  journal,  almost  every  day  in  some 
work  of  philanthropy ;  with  the  exception  of  two  days' 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  297 

rest,  he  lectured  every  day  from  the  12th  of  February 
to  the  12th  of  March,  1844. 

The  rapacity  of  the  agents  of  the  sailor  boarding- 
houses,  as  exhibited  in  their  dealings  with  the  sailor, 
excited  his  indignation,  and  he  did  not  rest  until  he 
had  aroused  a  healthy  public  sentiment,  against  their 
unprincipled  and  outrageous"  practices.  On  returning 
to  New  York,  while  addressing  a  large  meeting  at  the 
Sailors'  Home,  he  thus  adverts  to  this  subject.  Speak- 
ing of  the  "  land  pirates"  on  the  Savannah  River,  he 
said,  they  actually  steal  the  crews  of  vessels  and  lock 
them  up  in  their  rum  boarding-houses,  until  they  strip 
them  of  every  thing.  The  captains  and  crews  who 
came  to  hear  him  came  armed.  He  boldly  exposed 
the  abomination,  and  while  he  was  in  Savannah  one 
of  these  wretches  was  taken  up  by  the  city  authorities 
for  sailor  stealing,  and  fined  five  hundred  dollars. 

On  the  19th  of  February  Mr.  Hawkins  addressed, 
in  the  evening,  a  large  audience  in  the  Methodist 
Church  ;  it  was  on  the  occasion  of  the  regular  weekly 
meeting  of  the  Washington  Temperance  Society. 
The  exercises  were  commenced,  as  we  learn  from  a 
report  of  the  proceedings,  with  an  ode  by  the  choir  and 
a  prayer  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ross.  It  having  been  an- 
nounced that  Mr.  Hawkins  would  address  the  meeting, 
the  citizens  turned  out  in  great  numbers  to  hear  his 
"  reasonings  "  upon  temperance.  "  The  church,"  says 
a  Savannah  paper,  "was  crowded,  and  to  adopt  a 
common  mode  of  expression,  '  much  of  the  beauty  and 
the  fashion  of  our  city  was  present.' "  The  writer 
c-presses  the  wish  that  it  might  be  more  fashionable 
for  the  c-ti/ciis  -vncrally  to  In-conic  11  ic  friends  ;md 
advocates  of  the  great  temperance  reform,  anil  adds, 


298  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

that  from  present  indications  it  was  thought  there  was 
a  strong  probability  that  a  large  majority  would  be  on 
that  side.  The  following  is  a  brief  outline  of  the 
address  referred  to,  as  reported  for  the  press  :  — 

Mr.  Hawkins  .commenced  his  address  by  observing  (hat  the 
friends  of  temperance  could  not  have  selected  a  better  time 
than  the  present  for  bringing  their  principles  to  the  notice  of 
the  community.  Fortunately  the  theatre  is  now  closed,  —  tliei-e 
is  no  place  of  public  amusement  open  to  divert  the  public 
attention,  and  it  can  be  fixed  steadily  and  without  interruption 
upon  this  important  subject.  He  was  pleased  to  hear  that  the 
operations  of  the  society  had  become  the  subject  of  common 
conversation  ;  especially  was  he  rejoiced  to  know  that  tem- 
perance was  being  discussed  in  the  bar-room  and  at  the  tavern. 
This  was  carrying  the  subject  to  the  right  place.  The  trull  is 
which  may  have  been  uttered  are  thus  carried  to  many  who 
otherwise  would  never  have  heard  them  ;  and  let  us  hope  they 
may  not  be  without  some  practical  influence.  The  cause  of 
temperance  has  so  far  triumphed  over  all  prejudice  and  oppo- 
sition, tliat  its  enemies  are  now  at  a  loss  for  arguments  against 
it.  Driven  to  the  wall  they  now  attempt  to  decry  the  society, 
and  accuse  the  members  of  drinking  behind  the  door.  Mr. 
Hawkins  was  willing  to  admit  that  to  some  extent  the  charge  is 
true.  But  this  is  no  argument  against  temperance ;  not  any 
more  so  than  the  defection  of  .professors  of  religion  would  be 
an  argument  against  the  truth  and  value  of  Christianity. 
"  They  are  not  all  Israel  who  are  called  Israel. " 

But  the  importance  of  a  subject  can  never  be  lessened,  nor 
its  truth  impaired,  by  the  dereliction  of  those  who  profess  to 
advocate  it.  Our  object  should  be  to  discuss  this  subject  fairly, 
to  come  to  an  impartial  consideration  of  the  facts  connected 
with  the  use  of  strong  drink,  and  inquire  whether  a  sense  of 
duty  should  not  induce  us  to  sign  the  pledge.  If  no  other  con- 
sideration can  influence  us,  a  regard  to  our  own  interest  should 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  299 

prompt  us  to  inquire  how  far  we  are  losers  by  the  use  of  strong 
drinks,  or  what  benefit  we  derive  from  them.  Mr.  Hawkins 
had  within  a  few  days  conversed  with  a  gentleman  from  the 
country,  who  had  received  a  bill  for  groceries  amounting  to 
five  hundred  dollars  ;  of  this  sum  three  hundred  dollars  were 
expended  for  wines  and  other  intoxicating  drinks.  What  had 
this  individual  received  for  his  money  ?  A  fair  and  honest 
equivalent?  No!  He  had  exchanged  his  money  for  that 
which  destroys  the  intellect,  and  blasts  the  best  hopes  of  man, 
both  for  time  and  eternity. 

Mr.  Hawkins  was  aware  that  in  speaking  upon  this  point  he 
might  be  supposed  to  be  hostile  to  the  interests  of  that  class 
of  the  community  who  make  a  living  by  the  sale  of  strong 
drinks.  His  business  was  not  so  much  with  the  vender  as  the 
consumer.  The  vender  sees  every  day  the  practical  effect  of 
his  traffic.  Day  by  day  he  witnesses  the  misery  and  wretched- 
ness which  he  entails  upon  his  fellow-man,  and  we  must  leave 
it  to  his  conscience  to  admonish  him.  Our  main  efforts  should 
be  directed  to  the  rescue  of  the  victim  of  intemperance.  We 
wish  to  remove  him  from  the  scene  of  temptation,  and  to  fortify 
him  against  the  attacks  of  the  enemy.  If  in  these  efforts  we 
are  successful,  and  a  class  of  men  suffer  who  are  catering  to 
the  unhallowed  appetites  of  their  neighbors,  upon  themselves, 
their  business,  and  not  upon  us,  be  the  consequences. 

The  dealer  in  strong  drinks  boasts  that  his  business  is  hon 
orable  and  right,  because  it  is  legalized.  He  has  his  license 
from  the  people.  Be  it  so.  The  poor  drunkard  has  no  license 
to  get  drunk,  and  he  needs  the  kind  interposition  of  friends  to 
rescue  him  from  ruin.  And  why  is  it  that  the  law  is  so  une- 
qual in  its  enactments  in  regard  to  drunkards  and  those  who 
make  them  ?  The  former  may  be  prosecuted  and  imprisoned, 
and  fed  on  bread  and  water  for  fifty-two  days,  for  indulging  in 
strong  drinks ;  the  latter  may  make  a  hundred  drunkards  and 
the  law  protects  them  in  their  trade.  Is  this  even-handed  jus- 
tice ?  Jle  would,  however,  say  to  those  who  are  engaged  in 


300  LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

this  legalized  work  of  death,  "  Friends,  see  well  to  it  that  you 
preserve  your  license ;  place  it  in  an  iron  chest  that  it  may  be 
secure  against  all  loss.  When  you  are  about  to  die,  let  your 
friends  put  it  between  your  clammy  fingers,  and  fail  not  to 
carry  it  with  you  to  the  judgment-bar  of  God,  and  there  plead 
your  license  as  a  palliation  for  the  evils  you  have  wrought  in 
the  world." 

Mr.  Hawkins  expatiated  very  happily  upon  the  moral 
power  of  the  pledge,  and  showed  most  conclusively,  that  when 
every  other  means  had  proved  ineffectual,  the  simple  act  of 
signing  the  pledge  had  wrought  a  reformation  in  individuals 
whose  recovery  had  been  regarded  as  beyond  all  hope. 

Mr.  Hawkins  presented  a  letter,  which  he  had  received  dur- 
ing the  evening.  It  was  signed,  "  A  Sufferer"  and  was  doubt- 
less written  by  some  one  who  has  suffered  from  a  loss  of  cus- 
tomers. The  author  of  the  letter  complained  of  the  injury 
which  he  had  experienced  by  intemperance  and  temperance, 
and  requested  Mr.  Hawkins  to  remind  some  of  his  new  con- 
verts that  they  had  a  duty  to  perform  that  ought  not  to  be  for- 
gotten ;  viz.,  "  to  pay  off  old  scores"  Mr.  Hawkins  made  some 
very  humorous  and  forcible  comments  upon  this  letter,  and 
expressed  the  hope  that  there  might  be  many  more  such  "  suf- 
ferers," here  and  elsewhere. 

On  concluding  his  address,  he  suggested  to  the  friends  of  the 
cause  the  necessity  of  contributing  something  for  the  relief  of 
the  reformed  inebriate.  Donations  of  old  clothes,  hats,  shoes, 
etc.,  would  be  thankfully  received  by  the  officers  of  the  society, 
and  distributed  among  those  who  were  destitute. 

The  interest  in  this  good  work  is  certainly  on  the  increase. 
Since  Mr.  Hawkins'  visit  to  our  city  upwards  of  four  hundred 
have  signed  the  pledge,  and  " still  they  come"  May  God  con- 
tinue to  speed  the  cause. 

An  incident  occurred  during  his  mission  to  Savan- 
nah which  deserves  particular  notice.  So  great  was 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 


301 


the  interest  felt  in  his  labors  by  the  Roman  Catholic 

population,  that  Father ,  of  the  Catholic  Church, 

determined  so  far  to  dismiss  his  prejudices  against  a 
Protestant,  as  to  invite  him  to  address  his  people  on  a 
day  which  he  should  name.  He  accordingly  called 
upon  him,  stated  the  extent  to  which  intemperance  pre- 
vailed among  his  Hock,  and  solicited  his  aid  in  their 
behalf.  Mr.  Hawkins  cheerfully  consented,  and  at  the 
time  appointed  repaired  to  the  church,  which  was  one 
of  ample  dimensions.  He  found  to  his  astonishment, 
on  entering,  that  every  seat  was  filled.  On  advancing 
to  the  chancel,  he  observed  that  a  table  had  been  placed 

in  front    of   it.     Father inquired  of   the    sexton 

why  it  was  there.  "  And  sure,  sir,  it  is  for  the  spaker 
to  stand  upon,"  W8"  the  reply.  "  Remove  it  immedi- 
ately ;  Mr.  Huwkins  is  good  enough  to  stand  within 
my  chancel."  He  took  his  scat  immediately  in  front 
of  Mr.  Hawkins,  and  as  he  proceeded  in  his  remarks 
the  tears  began  to  course  their  way  down  the  good 
father's  face,  and  before  he  had  concluded  he  wept,  as 
hundreds  of  others  in  that  congregation  did,  like  a  child. 
Mr.  Hawkins  had  evidently  produced  a  great  effect 
upon  his  hearers.  As  soon  as  he  had  concluded,  Father 

sprang  upon  his  feet,  under  great  emotion,  and 

ordered  the  sexton  to  "  Fasten  every  door  of  the  church. 
Let  not  a  man  or  a  woman  leave  the  house  until  you 
have  all  signed  this  pledge ! "  he  exclaimed,  pointing  to 
it  as  it  lay  upon  the  table  ;  nor  did  he  desist  until  his 
flock  were  all  pledged  to  the  principles  of  total  absti- 
nence. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  Mr.  Hawkins  left  Savannah 
for  Milledgeville,  where  he  lectured  until  the  7th,  on 
which  dav  he  went  to  Macon,  where  he  remained  three 


302  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

days  and  returned  to  Savannah  on  the  12th.  On  the 
4th  of  this  month  he  wrote  a  letter  to  a  friend  in  Bos- 
ton, Capt.  W.  R.  Stacy,  in  which  he  says :  — 

It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  inform  you  of  the  unexpected 
and  unbounded  success  I  have  met  with  in  every  place  I  have 
visited  in  the  South,  and  more  especially  in  Savannah.  In  all 
that  I  have  travelled,  which  is  more  than  forty  thousand  miles, 
I  have  never  seen  the  people  take  hold  of  the  cause  as  they  do 
here.  Every  meeting  is  crowded  to  excess,  and  with  all  classes 
of  citizens.  On  my  arrival  the  temperance  society  numbered 
two  hundred  and  twenty-five.  I  have  been  here  twenty-one 
days  and  it  now  numbers  seven  hundred  and  twenty-four,  and 
is  rapidly  on  the  increase.  I  have  had  several  meetings  of  the 
children,  and  I  wish  much  you  were  here  to  see  them,  as  I 
know  from  the  interest  you  have  taken  in  the  formation  of  the 
"  Cold  Water  Army,"  you  would  have  been  much  pleased.  You 
will  receive  with  this  a  request  from  Mr.  John  Ingersoll,  Pres- 
ident of  the  Savannah  Temperance  Society,  to  furnish  him 
with  two  full  sets  of  "  Cold  Water  Army  "  banners,  three  hun- 
dred badges,  three  hundred  sortg  books,  for  which  he  will  for- 
ward the  money  as  soon  as  received. 

Mr.  Hawkins  remained  at  Savannah  until  the  18th 
of  March,  and  then  left  for  Charleston,  when  he  began 
his  journey  homeward. 

On  arriving  at  Boston,  April  6th,  he  received  the  fol- 
lowing communication  :  — 

CHARLESTON,  March  30,  1844. 

DEAR  SIR,  —  At  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Managers  of 
the  Charleston  Total  Abstinence  Society,  held  on  the  evening 
of  the  30th  of  March,  the  following  resolutions  were  unani- 
mously passed:  — 

Resolved,  That  this  Board  regards  with  feelings  of  deep  satisfaction 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  303 

the  labors  of  Mr.  John  H.  W.  Hawkins  in  the  cause  of  temperance  in  this 
city,  and  in  the  neighboring  towns  of  this  State  and  in  Georgia ;  and  that 
his  benevolent  zeal  in  ameliorating  the  condition  of  the  unfortunate  ine- 
briate, merits  the  approbation  of  the  friends  of  humanity  everywhere. 

Resolved,  That  the  President  of  the  society  communicate  to  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins, the  resolution  just  passed. 

Extract  from  the  minutes. 

J.  B.  BETTS,  Recording  Secretary, 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

"  Pity  dwelleth  in  thy  bosom, 

Kindness  rcigncth  o'er  thy  heart ; 
Gentle  thoughts  alone  can  sway  thce  — 
Judgment  hath  in  thee  no  part. 

"  Hoping  ever,  failing  never, 

Though  deceived,  believing  still ; 
Long  abiding,  all  confiding, 
To  thy  heavenly  Father's  will ; 

"  Never  weary  of  well-doing, 
Never  fearful  of  the  end  ; 
Claiming  all  mankind  as  brothers, 
Thou  dost  all  alike  befriend." 

ON  reaching  Boston  Mr.  Hawkins  found  his  family 
in  greatly  improved  health.  He  was  thereby  enabled 
to  accept  many  of  the  invitations  extended  to  him  from 
various  parts  of  New  England.  At  an  early  date  after 
his  return  he  met  his  Washingtonian  brethren  in  the 
Odeon,  and  addressed  them  at  considerable  length  on 
the  great  progress  of  temperance  at  the  South;  the 
temperance  papers  spoke  of  his  remarks  as  having 
been  well  received.  He  was  greatly  rejoiced  at  the 
new  accessions  to  the  already  large  number  of  able 
temperance  advocates,  and  to  every  new  co-laborer  who 
gave  evidence  of  moral  worth  he  extended  a  hearty 
welcome. 

Among  the  remarkable  reformations  in  the  city  of 
Worcester,  Massachusetts,  was  that  of  John  B.  Gough. 
This  happy  event  occurred  sometime  in  the  month  of 

(304) 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS  305 

October,  1842.  An  extended  account  of  his  life  and 
trials,  and  his  final  reclamation,  may  be  found  in  an 
autobiography  published  some  years  after.  Sincerely 
grateful  for  his  escape  from  the  path  of  rain,  possess- 
ng  fine  powers  of  imagination,  a  well-cultivated  fancy, 
and  a  ready  utterance,  he  soon  became  an  able  and  a 
distinguished  lecturer ;  he  gave  every  evidence  of  being 
deeply  and  sincerely  impressed  with  a  conviction  of 
the  great  evil  of  intemperance.  He  possessed  the  ele- 
ments of  popular  oratory  in  a  large  degree,  and  few 
persons  could  remain  unmoved  while  listening  to  him 
as  he  depicted,  in  chaste  and  eloquent  language,  the 
joys  Of  temperance  and  the  sorrows  of  the  inebriate. 
On  reaching  Boston,  Mr.  Hawkins  found  Mr.  Gough, 
with  his  friend  Deacon  Moses  Grant  making  arrange- 
ments to  visit  a  number  of  Southern  cities  in  which 
Mr.  Gough  had  been  invited  to  lecture.  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins, with  his  accustomed  generosity,  rendered  every 
facility  in  his  power  to  make  the  visit  a  pleasant  one. 
The  following  note  will  explain  itself:  — 

BOSTON,  May  8,  1844. 

Mr  DEAR  MOTHER,  —  This  will  be  handed  you  by  my 
much  esteemed  friend,  Deacon  Moses  Grant,  of  Boston,  of 
whom  you  have  often  heard  me  speak.  He  accompanies  my 
friend  and  co-laborer,  John  B.  Gough,  who  comes  to  Baltimore 
by  the  special  invitation  of  Christian  Keener,  to  lecture  upon 
the  subject  of  temperance ;  he  is  one  of  the  best  lecturers  on 
this  subject  I  have  ever  heard.  I  want  you  all  to  go  and  hear 
him. 

Mr.  Plympton  is  very  thankful  for  the  attention  paid  him  by 
you  all ;  he  speaks  of  the  visit  with  great  satisfaction. 
I  remain  ever  yours,  my  dear  mother, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS, 

26* 


306  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Among  the  many  friends  whom  Mr.  Hawkins  made 
in  Boston,  was  Henry  Plympton,  Esq.  He  was  among 
the  first  who  welcomed  him  to  Boston  in  1841,  and 
ever  remained  one  of  his  most  devoted  friends  and 
benefactors.  Mr.  Hawkins'  attachment  to  his  friend 
was  equally  strong,  and  continued  unabated  to  the 
close  of  his  earthly  career.  The  following  letter  from 
Mr.  Plympton  to  the  compiler  of  this  memoir  'viL  be 
read  with  interest :  — 

BOSTON,  Oct.  9,  1858. 

REV.  WILLIAM  G.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir,  —  Your  kind 
favor  of  the  28th  of  August  was  received  during  my  absence 
from  this  city ;  care  and  indisposition  have  prevented  me  from 
making  an  earlier  reply.  The  reception  of  your  late  letter, 
conveying  the  sad  intelligence  of  the  decease  of  your  affec- 
tionate father,  gave  a  thrilling  shock  to  my  feelings,  so  much 
so  that  it  required  some  moments  to  reconcile  it  to  my  mind 
as  real.  This  announcement  immediately  carried  me  back  to 
the  period  of  1841,  when  I  first  met  him,  with  other  friends 
of  temperance,  in  Tremont  Street,  in  a  hall  under  the  Museum. 
Methinks  I  now  see  him  before  me,  depicting  the  haggard  and 
emaciated  form,  the  sufferings  of  the  drunkai'd ;  there  he  stood 
as  a  monument,  bearing  witness  to  the  truth  of  his  painful 
description  of  the  drunkard's  life,  shivering  in  his  tattered 
garments,  giving  his  experience  in  language  as  searching  as 
the  melted*  lava  from  Mt.  Vesuvius  ;  he  seemed  inspired  for  the 
time  and  occasion,  and  I  have  no  doubt  now,  nor  had  I  then, 
but  he  was  moved  by  the  immediate  inspiration  of  God ;  and 
from  that  time  to  the  period  of  his  decease,  he  has  gone  for- 
ward, laboring  in  this  noble  enterprise  without  faltering  in 
speech  or  deed ;  always  verifying  his  professions  by  his  per- 
sonal example ;  how  noble,  how  encouraging,  it  would  be  if  all 
who  have  from  time  to  time  engaged  in  this  great  moral  effort 
could  show  the  same  results  !  but  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  thui 
the  fact  is  far  otherwise. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  307 

Your  father  made  the  first  great  demonstration  as  the  "  re- 
formed drunkard"  in  Faneuil  Hall,  in  Boston,  at  a  meeting  at 
which  the  late  Gen.  Theodore  Lyman  presided,  who  was  there 
at  my  suggestion  and  personal  solicitation,  as  a  member  of  a 
committee  who  waited  upon  him.     I  remember,  too,  how  readily 
he  complied  with  the  request  to  preside,  and  remarked,  "  that 
the  temperance  cause  must  succeed;  it  could  not  fall  backward; 
the  whole  country  was  aroused  to  the  magnitude  of  its  great 
moral  bearing,  and  it  must  triumph."     These   are  nearly  his 
words  and  the  sentiments  he  uttered.     It  was  on  this  occasion 
that  your  father  made  the  remark,  and  with  great  emphasis, 
«  that  the  appetite  for  strong  drink  never  dies,"  for  he  had  heard 
of  instances  where  it  had  been  revived  by  a  single  glass,  so  as 
to  bring  back  the  habit  with  all  its  baneful  effects,  after  an 
abstinence  for  fifty  years.     This  remark  to  me  was  quite  orig- 
inal, but  is  the  most  powerful  argument  which  can  be  used  to 
the  drunkard,  and  this  remark,  too,  holds  good  with  all  demor- 
alizing habits. 

Please  pardon  this  hasty  sketch,  and  tender  my  best  regards 
to  your  good  mother,  and  accept  for  yourself  and  family  the 

kindest  wishes  of, 

Truly,  your  friend, 

HENRY  PLYMPTON. 

During  the  months  of  April  and  May,  1844,  Mr. 
Hawkins  visited  and  lectured  in  various  parts  of  New 
England.  Extensive  preparations  were  being  made 
throughout  that  section  of  the  Union,  for  celebrating 
the  third  anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the  Washing- 
ton Temperance  Society  of  Boston.  The  enthusi- 
asm of  the  people  was  thoroughly  aroused,  and  they 
were  becoming  impatient  to  make  a  demonstration 
1  nut  should  convince  the  indifferent,  and  especially  their 
,-iK-inicH,  llmt  the  cause  in  which  they  were  engaged 
was  in  their  estimation  a  most  important  one,  and  that 


308  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

the  evils  which  they  were  seeking  to  overcome  were 
of  no  insignificant  character. 

The  30th  day  of  May,  1844,  the  anniversary  referred 
to,  deserves  long  to  be  remembered  ;  other  assemblings 
of  the  temperance  host  had  been  large,  but  this  sur- 
passed them  all.  It  was  emphatically  a  mass  meeting 
of  the  friends  of  temperance  ;  invitations,  extended  to 
the  various  organizations  in  the  neighboring  States,  had 
been  accepted,  and  several  of  the  Original  Six  Wash- 
ingtonians,  from  Baltimore  were  present.  The  papers 
stated  that  nine  thousand  five  hundred  persons  came 
into  the  city  over  the  Eastern  Railroad,  and  from 
twenty  to  thirty  thousand  by  other  routes  and  convey- 
ances. The  beautiful  Common,  furnished  with  its  carpet 
of  green,  spread  out  there  by  the  hand  of  a  good  Prov- 
idence, invited  the  assembling  thousands  to  come  up 
and  breathe  the  fresh  air  of  heaven.  Long  before  the 
hour  of  eleven,  a  dense  mass  of  human  beings  was 
gathered  within  its  ample  enclosure. 

The  Cold  Water  Army  alone  is  said  to  have  num- 
bered ten  thousand.  It  was  composed  of  children  from 
the  Sabbath  schools  in  Boston  and  vicinity,  and  the 
children  from  the  public  schools,  which  were  closed 
upon  that  day.  The  ordinary  business  of  the  day  was 
in  a  great  measure  suspended.  The  American  flag 
was  flying  from  the  State  House,  from  almost  every 
flag-staff  in  the  city,  and  at  the  mast-head  of  the  ship- 
ping at  the  wharves  and  in  the  harbor. 

Says  Dr.  Marsh :  — 

At  twelve  the  immense  procession  of  military,  his  Excel- 
lency the  Governor  in  a  barouche  drawn  by  four  beautiful 
white  horses,  together  with  numerous  societies  and  6re  compa- 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


309 


nies  from  town  and  country,  which  had  been  admirably  arranged 
on  three  sides  of  the  Common,  by  S.  A.  Walker,  Esq.,  Grand 
Marshal,  moved  from  the  State  House  down  Beacon  Street, 
around  to  Park  Street,  down  the  Mall,  through  two  long  rows 
of  beautiful  children,  arranged  by  Deacon  Grant,  down  Wash- 
in-ton  Street,  through  Milk,  Kilby,  and  State  Streets,  to  the 
North  End,  and  back  through  Hanover  and  Tremont  to  the 

Common. 

The  streets  through  which  the  procession  passed  wer 
nificently  decorated  with  flags  and  banners;  and  through  their 
entire  length,  the  sidewalks,  balconies,  and  windows  were  fille 
with  spectators,  who,  with  joyful  voices,  and  waving  handker- 
chiefs, and  delight  beaming  from  their  countenances,  cheered 
the  procession  on  their  march.     Milk  and  Kilby  Streets  were 
arched  with  flags,  and  from  the  windows  of  the  stores  rich 
goods  of  every  hue  were  displayed. 

'  On  reaching  the  Common,  the  thousands  joined  in  a  chorus, 
"  The  Teetotallers  are  Coming."  Prayer  was  offered  by  the 
venerable  Dr.  Pierce,  of  Brookline ;  after  which  his  Excellency 
Governor  Briggs,  from  a  stand,  addressed  the  people  for  about 
half  an  hour,  in  a  strain  of  manly  and  cheering  eloquence; 
setting  forth  the  triumph  of  the  temperance  reformation,  and 
its  blessed  tendencies  and  results  throughout  the  world. 

The  Mercantile  Journal  reports  the  following  remarks 
from  Governor  Briggs :  - 

The  Governor  said  that  that  was  a  great  day  for  temperance. 
By  the  blessing  of  heaven  they  had  assembled  under  the  most 
favorable  auspices.  There,  on  that  beautiful  spot,  with  the 
trees  and  shrubbery  around  clad  in  their  most  genial  attrac- 
tions, every  thing  betokened  the  favor  of  Heaven.  It  was,  he 
repeated,  a  great  day  for  temperance.  The  delegates  there  had 
cpme  from  every  part  of  the  Union,  in  obedience  to  the  call 
of  the  Washingtonians  of  Boston,  in  unnumbered  thousands,  to 
express  their  devotion  to  the  glorious  cause  of  temperance.  It 


310  LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

was  probably  the  largest  convention  which  had  ever  there  as- 
sembled for  any  purpose  and  on  any  occasion  ;  and  could  those 
devoted  men,  now  in  their  graves,  who  assembled  in  the  year 
1813  to  collect  facts  in  regard  to  the  increasing  evils  of  intem- 
perance, witness  this  result  of  the  commencement  of  their 
labors,  nothing  could  exceed  their  gratification.  Could  they 
even  have  seen  the  results  which  flowed  from  the  old  pledge 
and  measures,  their  hearts  Avould  have  been  glad.  Their  prin- 
ciple of  action  was  to  train  aright  the  rising  generation,  the 
children,  leaving  the  confirmed  drinkers  to  their  melancholy 
fate.  He  spoke  in  a  highly  complimentary  manner  of  the 
Washingtonian  movement;  that  from  small  beginnings  there 
had  arisen  "  a  mighty  band  of  reformed  men,  who  went  abroad 
striving  to  do  good;"  great  had  been  their  success,  the  evi- 
dence of  which  was  to  be  seen  in  the  mighty  host  there  as<em- 
bled. 

The  banners  bore  numerous  and  tasteful  devices,  and 
attracted  much  notice.  We  refer  in  a  note  to  one, 
which  bore  for  its  motto  the  words  used  by  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins in  his  first  address  in  Faneuil  Hall.*  Several  stands 
for  speakers  were  erected  upon  the  Common,  and  nu- 
merous addresses  from  each  were  made  by  distinguished 
friends  of  the  cause.  At  stand  No.  1,  stirring  speeches 
were  made  by  Mr.  F.  W.  Kellogg,  Rev.  Mr.  Chapin, 
of  Charlestown,  by  Dr.  Charles  Jewett,  Mr.  Hawkins, 

*  The  Roxbury  Ingrain  Carpet  Factory  Total  Abstinence  Society  h:ul 
one  of  the  most  splendid  banners,  probably,  ever  seen  in  any  procession, 
and  was  a  beautiful  specimen  of  home  manufacture.  It  was  woven  in 
one  of  the  looms  of  the  factory,  of  fine  material,  and  presented  a  harmo- 
nious combination  of  many  brilliant  colors.  The  banner  was  three  yards 
and  a  half  long  by  two  and  a  half  wide.  It  bore  the  name  of  the  society 
on  one  side,  and,  on  the  other,  an  eagle  with  extended  wings,  holding  in 
his  beak  a  scroll,  on  which  were  inscribed  the  words  :  "  The  second  Dec- 
laration of  Independence ! " 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  311 

and  many  others.  Mr.  Hawkins  spoke  also  at  the 
second  stand  ;  on  each  occasion,  it  is  said,  "  with  evi- 
dent satisfaction  to  the  people." 

The  temperance  societies  forming  the  procession 
were  composed  of  people  of  all  religious  persuasions ; 
a  large  number  of  Roman  Catholic  teetotalers  from 
Boston  and  the  neighboring  towns,  marched  in  the 
ranks.  The  liberal  spirit  which  pervaded  the  temper- 
ance community  on  that  day,  is  beautifully  expressed 
in  the  following  resolution,  which  was  adopted :  — 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  aim  of  this  celebration  to  cheer  the 
hearts  and  nerve  the  hands  of  the  friends  of  temperance  ;  to 
direct  the  attention  of  the  world  to  the  Washingtonian  move- 
ment, while  those  results  are  to  be  seen  on  our  right  hand  and 
on  our  left  and  in  our  midst,  to  the  PIONEERS  in  the  temper- 
ance cause  —  to  the  men  who  struck  the  first  spark  and  created 
therewith  a  fire  which  can  never  be  put  out,  and  which  will 
never  cease  to  shed  its  greatest  brightness  on  those  who  first 
kindled  it ;  to  gather  faith  and  strength  from  the  presence  and 
moral  power  of  the  women  of  New  England  ;  to  march  shoul- 
der to  shoulder  with  the  warm  and  noble-hearted  countrymen 
of  Father  Matthew  ;  to  be  inspired  by  the  beautiful  and  hope- 
ful spectacle  of  ten  thousand  youthful  soldiers  of  the  Cold  Water 
Army  ;  and,  lastly,  to  mingle  the  "Washingtonian  banner  with 
all  other  banners,  with  «  THE  CAUSE  "  for  our  only  motto. 

The  fourth  of  July,  1844,  was  observed  by  the  friends 
of  temperance  in  a  manner  not  inferior  to  that  of  for- 
mer years.  The  meeting  of  large  masses  everywhere, 
and  the  order  and  quiet  which  characterized  those 
meetings,  was  the  subject  of  comment  throughout  the 
land.  Mr.  Hawkins  spent  the  day  in  the  village  of 
Sherburne,  Ct.,  where,  with  his  rural  audience  and 


312  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

their  "  homely  joys,"  he  doubtless  enjoyed  himself  far 
better  than  he  could  amid  the  pomp  and  glittering  dis- 
play of  the  city.  He  was  not  however  forgotten  by  his 
countrymen ;  in  several  places  sentiments  in  praise  of 
his  character  and  labors  were  offered.  Dr.  Marsh  quotes 
the  following  as  worthy  of  a  place  in  his  Journal.  It  is 
certainly  highly  complimentary  to  Mr.  Hawkins. 

John  Hawkins  and  Martin  Luther ;  two  bright  luminaries 
in  distant  eras  of  the  world.  They  cannot  be  forgotten ;  they 
must  go  down  to  the  ages  of  eternity,  the  pioneers  of  human 
liberty. 

We  return  to  the  subject  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  daily  la- 
bors. Previous  to  May  30th  he  visited  and  lectured  in 
the  following  places  :  —  Westport,  Padanaram,  Hixite 
Meeting-house,  Westport  Point,  Russell  Mills,  Smith 
Mills,  New  Bedford,  Reading,  Burlington,  Dorchester, 
Roxbury,  Boston  (Tremont  Temple  and  Lewis  wharf), 
Salem,  N.  H.,  Lowell,  Methuen,  Pelham,  Middlesex 
Village,  Sherburne,  Old  Cambridge,  North  Reading, 
three  days  in  Providence.  On  the  sixth  of  July  he  left 
Boston  on  a  tour  to  the  Western  part  of  the  State,  and 
to  places  in  New  York. 

On  the  fifteenth  he  wrote  the  following  letter  to  his 
son,  at  Wilbraham  :  — 

GREAT  BAKRINGTON,  July  15,  1844. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  — I  drop  you  a  line- according  to  promise, 
which  will  inform  you  that  I  am  well  and  having  a  very  pleasant 
tour.  I  have  lectured  in  Pittsfield  twice,  in  Lenox,  Curtis- 
ville,  and  Great  Barrington,  to  crowded  houses.  This  evening 
I  lecture  in  Sheffield ;  Tuesday  evening  in  New  Marlboro' ; 
Wednesday,  Saundersville  ;  Thursday,  New  Boston ;  Friday,  at 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  313 

Otis.  Saturday  I  return  to  Pittsfield,  where  I  hope  to  meet 
your  mother.  If  I  am  disappointed  I  shall  feel  bad.  I  sup- 
pose she  is  with  you,  and  well  I  hope.  She  can  take  the  cars 
at  12  M.  at  Collins  Depot,  and  I  shall  be  on  the  look-out  for  her 
at  Pittsfield  at  3-|  P.M.  I  have  good  quarters  for  her  at  the 
Washingtonian  Hotel,  close  by  the  depot,  where  we  stay  over 
Sabbath,  and  on  Monday  morning  take  our  departure  for  Sara- 
toga Springs,  at  which  place  I  have  an  appointment  for  the 
same  night.  I  have  engaged  comfortable  quarters  for  her 
during  our  short  stay  at  the  Springs.  When  we  meet  we  will 
talk  over  the  whole  matter  of  your  entering  college. 
No  more  at  present ;  my  love  to  you  all. 

J.  II.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins'  visit  to  Berkshire  County  was  the 
occasion  for  large  gatherings  of  the  people,  and 
wherever  he  went  he  found  the  beneficial  effects  of  the 
reformation.  He  collected  statistics,  as  was  his  con- 
stant custom  in  every  place  visited,  and  thus  prepared 
himself  to  vindicate  the  cause  by  facts,  the  best  of 
arguments.*  Says  the  New-England  Cataract,  an 

*  The  following  statistics  are  to  the  point ;  — 

At  a  temperance  meeting  in  New  Haven  a  few  evenings  since,  Mr. 
Williams  gave  some  very  important  statistical  accounts  relative  to  the 
progress  of  the  cause  in  Massachusetts,  where  he  has  been  laboring  for  sev- 
eral months.  Four  years  ago,  said  he,  the  pauper  tax  of  Massachusetts 
amounted  to  $200,000,  and  eight-tenths  of  all  the  pauperism  was  occasioned 
by  the  use  of  strong  drink.  Two  years  ago  this  tax  was  reduced  to 
$136,000;  and  last  year  it  only  amounted  to  $41,000.  The  great 
reduction  of  the  pauper  tax  has  been  brought  about  by  the  Icmprrunre 
reform.  There  have  been  reformed  in  the  State  within  (he  past  four  years 
thirty-one  thousand  drunkards.  When  he,  Mr.  W.,  and  Mr.  Hawkins,  first 
visited  the  town  of  Worcester,  three  years  ago,  there  -were  four  hundred 
and  sixty-nine  inmates  of  the  poorhouses  in  the  country,  but  they  got  almost 
every  name  to  the  pledge,  and  the  last  year  the  whole  number  of  pauper.; 
at  Worcester  was  only  eleven.  So  great  b:nl  Ixvu  the  reduction  of 
the  pauper  tax  in  Worcester,  that  the  town  voted  an  annual  payment  of 
27 


314  LIFE  OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

excellent  paper  established  at  Pittsfield :  "  The  in- 
habitants of  Berkshire  are  attending  a  series  of  mass 
meetings  for  the  county,  aided  by  that  indefatigable 
laborer,  John  Hawkins."  "  Mr.  Hawkins,"  adds  Dr. 
Marsh,  "  never  stood  higher  than  at  the  present  time." 

He  concluded  his  rather  fatiguing  engagement  in 
Berkshire  on  the  21st  of  July.  Before  leaving  Pitts- 
field  he  addressed  the  following  note  to  his  son.  The 
Wesleyan  University  is  located  at  Middletown,  Con- 
necticut, whtther  his  son  proceeded,  was  examined,  and 

admitted. 

PITTSFIELD,  July  22,  1844. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  Your  mother  has  arrived  and  we  leave 
for  Saratoga  this  morning,  where  I  shall  of  course  leave  her 
for  a  few  weeks,  which  will,  I  have  no  doubt,  improve  her 
health.  You  need  not  be  astonished  if  she  should  remain  all 
the  month  of  August,  for  her  health  must  be  attended  to.  She 
tells  me  that  it  is  the  wish  of  Hannah  to  visit  Middletown  with 
you,  to  be  present  at  commencement.  I  have  no  objection,  but 
on  the  contrary  it  will  give  me  pleasure ;  and  I  enclose  ten 
dollars  to  bear  your  expenses.  You  shall  hear  from  me  again 
shortly.  I  send  you  a  Baltimore  Saturday  Visitor. 

.Your  father,  affectionately,        J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Leaving  Mrs.  Hawkins  at  Saratoga  Springs,  he  con- 
tinued on  his  tour  of  lecturing,  visiting  twenty-six 
towns  in  Massachusetts  and  New  York,  between  the 

out  of  the  town  treasury,  to  the  Washington  Society,  the  free  use 

of  the  large  hall  as  a  place  of  meeting,  and  also  gave  them  lights  and 
fuel.  One  town  pauper  who  signed  the  pledge  at  that  time  immediately 
commenced  work,  his  friends  procuring  him  a  yoke  of  oxen.  Last  year 
he  left  for  the  Western  country,  with  a  fine  span  of  horses,  and  seven 
hundred  dollars  in  his  pocket,  which  he  had  accumulated  from  his  own 
labor,  and  is  now  settled  on  his  farm  at  tho  West,  doing  a  prosperous 
business.  —  Organ. 


LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  315 

22d  of  July  and  the  20th  of  August.  After  resting  a 
few  days  he  passed  on  to  the  neighborhood  of  Spring- 
field, Mass.  He  reached  Boston  on  the  21st  of  Sep- 
tember, after  lecturing  to  large  audiences  in  twenty- 
five  additional  places. 

On  the  26th  of  September,  being  much  worn  down 
by  his  excessive  labors,  he  left  Boston,  with  a  portion 
of  his  family,  on  a  visit  to  Baltimore  and  places  on  the 
Chesapeake  Bay,  to  indulge  in  the  only  recreation  he 
allowed  himself,  and  of  which  he  was  excessively  fond. 
He  was  a  most  ardent  disciple  of  Izaac  Walton !  His 
extensive  travels  had  made  him  acquainted  with  almost 
every  lake  and  bay  of  note  in  the  country ;  he  knew 
where  to  go,  and  when  to  go,  and  how  to  prepare  for 
his  favorite  sport,  and  was  noted  among  his  friends  of 
similar  tastes  for  his  uniform  success. 

Many  amusing  incidents  are  related,  illustrative  of 
his  devotion  to  this  sport.  Having  selected  the  day 
when  he  contemplated  a  descent  upon  the  "finny 
tribe,"  every  preparation  having  been  made  the  day 
preceding,  he  arose  early,  and  long  before  sunrise  was 
on  his  way  to  the  spot  selected.  His  patience  and 
perseverance  were  unsurpassed.  Nothing  gave  him  so 
great  delight  on  returning  home,  as  to  share  his  fortune 
with  his  friends  and  neighbors.  His  sisters  would 
sometimes  ask  him  how  he  found  it  possible  to  keep  his 
mind  employed  during  those  long  days  of  summer  sport; 
he  would  sometimes  reply,  that  the  most  effective  .ad- 
dresses he  ever  delivered  were  arranged  during  his  fish- 
ing hours. 

An  instance  of  his  fondness  for  angling  was  related 
to  the;  writer  a  few  years  since.  He  was  engaged  on 
a  lecturing  tour  in  the  State  of  Vermont  during  the 


316  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W«    HAWKINS. 

"  fishing  season."  Being  in  a  town  near  to  a  lake,  after 
making  proper  inquiry  he  became  satisfied  that  sport 
was  to  be  found  in  its  crystal  waters ;  the  town  next  to 
be  reached,  and  in  which  he  was  to  lecture,  was  only 
five  miles  distant.  He-  had  written  to  the  clergyman  in 
whose  church  he  was  to  lecture,  several  days  before,  that 
he  might  look  for  him  at  the  time  appointed.  Accord- 
ingly, he  sent  his  baggage  ahead  by  the  public  convey- 
ance, with  directions  to  leave  it  at  the  clergyman's 
house,  while  he,  having  provided  himself  with  all  the 
apparatus  necessary,  proceeded  to  the  lake.  He  be- 
came so  absorbed  in  his  employment  that  noon  passed 
almost  before  he  was  aware  of  it ;  knowing,  however, 
that  his  place  of  lecturing  was  only  three  miles  distant, 
he  felt  in  no  haste  to  depart.  Three  o'clock  arrived  and 
he  had  not  yet  made  his  appearance  at  the  clergyman's 
house.  That  worthy  gentleman,  feeling  somewhat 
anxious,  and  knowing  that  unless  the  lecturer  came  a 
large  audience  would  be  disappointed,  ordered  his 
horse  to  be  harnessed,  and  started  along  the  road  lead- 
ing to  the  village  where  Mr.  Hawkins  lectured  the  pre- 
ceding night.  Inquiring  by  the  way,  he  could  hear 
nothing  of  him ;  and  it  was  not  until  he  reached  the 
village  that  he  learned  that  he  left  early  in  the  morning. 
The  clergyman  by  this  time  was  becoming  alarmed ; 
it  was  growing  late  in  the  afternoon,  and  he  was  has- 
tening homeward,  when  he  discovered  the  object  of  his 
pursuit  issuing  from  the  bushes  by  the  road  side,  with 
an  ample  supply  of  fish.  It  is  needless  to  add  that  the 
discovery  relieved  him  from  his  anxiety,  and  that  his 
supper-table  sustained  no  detriment  from  the  day's 
labor  of  the  angling  lecturer. 

Mr.  Hawkins  did  not,  however,  spend  all  his  vacation 


LIFE   OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  317 

in  fishing,  while  he  was  in  Maryland,  as  we  find  by  con- 
sulting his  journal.  On  the  6th  of  October  he  lectured 
at  the  Fell's  Point  Market,  within  sight  of  the  place 
where  his  boyhood  was  passed.  The  21st  and  22d  of 
October  he  lectured  at  Chestertown,  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  Maryland ;  26th,  lectured  to  the  colored  people  of 
Chestertown';  27th,  at  Quaker  Neck;  November  4th,  at 
Rock  Hall;  10th,  again  at  Quaker  Neck;  16th,  at 
Broad  Creek  ;  17th,  at  Bay  Side ;  24th,  at  St.  Michaels, 
famed  for  its  fine  oysters ;  29th,  at  Easton  ;  December 
2d,  he  lectured  before  the  Marion  Washington  Total 
Abstinence  Society.  The  pleasure  of  this  interview 
with  his  relatives  and  old  friends,  many  of  whom  he 
met  at  almost  every  point  he  visited  in  Maryland,  was 
unalloyed  by  a  single  sorrow ;  he  was  in  excellent 
health,  and  exempt  from  that  vicious  habit  which  in 
former  days  had  made  life  almost  a  burden  to  him ;  he 
was  truly  happy.  On  the  6th  of  December  he  wrote 
to  his  son,  then  at  college,  of  his  contemplated  tour 
through  the  West  and  South,  as  follows :  — 

BAI/HMOHE,  Dec.  6,  1844. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  suppose  you  feel  much  disappointed  in 
not  receiving  a  letter  from  me  before  this.  I  have  no  apology 
to  offer.  I  have  been  putting  it  off  from  time  to  time,  and  am 
now  on  the  eve  of  departing  for  the  West  and  South.  I  should 
have  been  off  a  month  ago,  but  have  been  waiting  for  the  great 
political  excitement  to  subside.*  I  shall  leave  Baltimore  on 
Monday,  and  be  in  Cumberland  the  same  night,  and  so  on. 
The  Visitor  will  give  you  some  account  of  my  contemplated 
tour.  You  shall  hear  from  me  by  letters  and  papers  occasion- 
ally. I  shall  not  return  till  May  or  June. 


*  The  Presidential  canvass. 
27* 


318  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Your  mother  I  took  with  me  to  the  Eastern-Shore,  where 
she  will  remain  during  the  winter  with  her  relatives. 

My  dear  son,  I  need  not  say  to  you  pursue  your  studies 
with  diligence,  pray  much  in  secret,  "  and  what  doth  the  Lord 
require  of  thee  but  to  do  justly,  and  to  love  mercy,  and  to  walk 
humbly  with  thy  God."  I  long  to  see  the  day,  if  in  the  provi 
dence  of  God  I  should  be  spared,  to  hear  you  preach  the  ever- 
lasting gospel  of  peace  to  a  dying  world.  O  my  dear  son,  live 
for  it,  pray  for  it,  look  to  God  constantly  for  it;  be  constant 
"  in  season  and  out  of  season  " ;  "  watch  and  pray,"  ever  look- 
ing to  that  God  who,  "  of  his  infinite  goodness  and  mercy  "  has 
plucked  your  poor  unworthy  father  as  a  "  brand  from  the  burn- 
ing "  and  placed  his  feet  upon  a  rock,  even  the  rock  Christ  Je- 
t,us.  Oh,  for  how  much  we  have  to  be  thankful !  such  kind 
relatives  and  friends,  and  for  the  great  and  happy  change  in 
our  circumstances,  which  God  in  his  goodness  has  so  unexpect- 
edly brought  about.  Let  it  ever  be  the  language  of  our  hearts, 
"  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul ;  and  all  that  is  within  me, 
bless  his  holy  name."  "  His  mercy  endureth  forever." 

You  will  see  by  the  Herald  I  send  you,  that  an  effort  is  be- 
ing made  to  secure  my  services  in  this  State  for  one  year,  com- 
mencing next  spring.  When  I  return,  if  my  life  is  spared,  I 
shall  pay  you  a  visit. 

In  conclusion,  I  wish  you  to  write  me  immediately.  Be 
particular  in  addressing  your  letters  as  I  shall  direct ;  the  an- 
swer to  this,  direct  to  Pittsburg,  Penn.  All  your  friends  join 
in  love  to  you.  I  subscribe  myself, 

Your  father,  very  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

The  following  letters  to  his  son  and  others,  contain 
a  concise  statement  of  his  progress  and  labors  during 
his  tour  to  the  South  and  West :  — 

CINCINNATI,  Jan.  13,  1845. 

MY  DEAR,  SON,  —  Enclosed  I  send  you  a  draft  on  New 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

York  for  seventy  dollars,  which  is  fifteen  dollars  more  than 
the   amount   you  have   stated;    this   balance   will   pay  your 

board,  &c. 

The  papers  I  send  you  will  give  you  some  account  ot  my 

travels.  _   ,. 

I  shall  leave  here  on  Wednesday  next,  15th  mst.,  for  Madi- 
son, Louisville,  St.  Louis,  &c.,  thence  to  New  Orleans.  You 
were  somewhat  surprised  at  my  not  being  any  farther  on  my 
journey ;  the  reason  was  this  :  the  political  excitement  raged 
to  such  a  degree  that  it  was  no  use  for  me  to  leave  Baltimore 

sooner. 

I  enjoy  most  excellent  health.    I  am  at  this  time  so  mu< 
engaged  that  I  do  not  feel  like  writing  to  you  a  very  interest- 
ing letter.     I  shall  take  another  opportunity,  when  my  mind  i 
more  collected.     I  purchased  in  Baltimore  a  very  large  " 
preserver  "  that  may  be  of  service  to  me.     I  wish  you  would 
see  that  Arthur  does  not  suffer  for  any  thing,  and  that  he  is 
treated  kindly.      Take  good  care  of  yourself.      Pray  much; 
«  search  the  Scriptures ; "  pray  for  me,  that  God  may  keep  me, 
and  preserve  my  life  to  see  you  once  more. 

Your  affectionate  father, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

MADISON,  Indiana,  Jan.  21,  1845. 

MY  DEAR  MOTHER,  AND  ALL  MY  CONNECTIONS  RESID- 
ING IN  THE  CITY  OF  BALTIMORE,  —  I  embrace  this  oppor- 
tunity of  writing  to  you  by  the  bearer,  Mr.  Charles  Shaw,  a 
very  respectable  merchant  of  this  city.  I  have  addressed  this 
letter,  as  you  see,  to  all  my  connections,  somewhat  out  of  the 
ordinary  way,  supposing  that  all  would  desire  the  pleasure,  if 
indeed  it  is  a  pleasure,  of  reading  it.  No  doubt  it  will  be 
pleasing  to  you  all  to  learn  that  I  am  well,  and  that  the  cause 
of  temperance  prospers  wherever  I  go.  God  indeed  does  co"i- 
tiiiue  to  bless  my  efforts. 

I  held  several  very  interesting  meetings  in*  Cumberland, 


320  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Maryland,  after  I  left  you  ;  a  great  many  signed  the  pledge ; 
many  of  them  had  never  signed  before.     From  thence  I  went 
to  Pittsburg,  where  I  remained  one  week,  addressing  crowded 
audiences  every  night.     Thence  I  took  steamboat  for  Steuben- 
ville,  where   I   remained   four  days,   lecturing   to   large  and 
respectable  audiences.     Thence  to  Wheeling,  where  I  remained 
five  days,  lecturing  to  crowded  houses.     I  then  proceeded  down 
the  Ohio,  by  steamboat,  to  Cincinnati,  where  I  was  received  by 
the  friends  of  temperance  with   open  arms.     I   remained  in 
Cincinnati  two  weeks,  lecturing  nearly  every  evening  to  over- 
flowing audiences.     I  again  took  steamboat  for  this  place,  and 
have  been  lecturing  here  for  several  evenings.     Sunday  night 
last  will   not   soon   be   forgotten.     I   lectured   in  the  M.  E. 
Church,  filled  to  its  utmost  capacity ;  there  was  scarcely  a  dry 
eye  in  the  house.     Last  evening  there  was  a  larger  meeting 
than  that  of  Sunday  even  ;  upwards  of  fifty  came  forward  and 
signed  the  pledge,  many  of  the  most  respectable  citizens  of  the 
place,  who  had  heretofore  stood  aloof,  and  many  of  them  hard 
cases.     I  shall  leave  here  on  Thursday  morning  next,  the  23d, 
for  Indianapolis,  the  capital  of  the  State,  by  special  invitation, 
where  I  shall  remain  until  about  Wednesday,  the  29th,  by 
which  time  this  letter  will  reach  you.     My  course  will  then  be 
to  Louisville,  where  I  shall  remain  a  few  days. 

The  remaining  two  pages  of  this  letter  contained  a 
minute  account  of  his  numerous  relatives  whom  he 
found  in  the  West,  their  location  having  been  for  many 
years  unknown  to  the  family  in  Baltimore. 

EVANSVILLB,  Ind.,  April  1,  1845. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  fully  expected  a  letter  from  you  at 
Louisville,  as  I  had  requested  you  to  write  me  at  that  place. 
I  wrote  for  your  mother  to  meet  me  at  Cincinnati,  which  she 
accordingly  did,  on  the  first  of  March,  in  excellent  health  ;  she 
has  gained  seVeral  pounds  of  flesh  ;  her  cough  has  well  nigh 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  321 

left  her.  My  health  is,  as  usual,  good.  We  purpose  returning 
to  Baltimore  about  the  first  or  middle  of  June.  We  shall  not 
go  up  to  St.  Louis,  as  the  season  is  so  far  advanced.  We 
intend  leaving  here  to-morrow,  per  steamboat,  for  New  Orleans, 
_  stopping  a  few  days  at  the  following  places ;  viz.,  Memphis, 
Vicksburg,  and  Natchez.  From  New  Orleans  we  shall  go  to 
Mobile,  Montgomery,  and  probably  to  Tuscaloosa,  in  Alabama  ; 
the  latter  place  is  the  capital  of  the  State.  There  the  Rev. 
John  C.  Keener,  son  of  Christian  Keener,  is  stationed ;  he  will 
be  of  great  service  to  me  in  my  work.  We  shall  then  proceed 
to  Macon,  Ga. ;  thence  by  railroad  to  Savannah ;  thence  to 
Charleston,  and  home.  I  shall  come  to  Middletown  in  a  few 
days  after  my  arrival  in  Baltimore.  I  feel  very  anxious  to 
hear  from  you ;  how  you  are  doing,  and  how  you  are  progress- 
ing in  religion.  O  my  dear  son,  be  watchful  unto  prayer,  live 
close  to  the  Saviour,  with  all  your  "  ransomed  powers."  My 
prospect  brightens  before  me ;  thanks  be  to  God,  "  I  know 
that  if  our  earthly  house  of  this  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we 
have  a  building  of  God,  an  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal 
in  the  heavens."  Answer  immediately  upon  the  receipt  of 
this ;  direct  to  New  Orleans,  to  the  care  of  the  postmaster. 
You  will  probably  hear  from  me  on  my  arrival  in  New  Orleans. 
Your  mother  joins  me  in  much  love  to  you. 

Your  father,  dear  son,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

NEW  ORLEANS,  La.,  April  25th,  1845. 

MY  DEAR  SON, —  Your  very  welcome  letter  dated  April 
10th  was  duly  received  yesterday,  and  I  now  hasten  to  answer 
it.  We  arrived  in  New  Orleans  on  Friday  last,  the  18th,  in 
the  steamer  Paul  Jones,  and  are  putting  up  at  a  private  board- 
ing-house kept  by  Mr.  Downer,  Vice  President  of  the  Tem- 
p<T;ince  Society.  We  met  in  this  city  with  the  kindest  recep- 
tion. In  less  than  two  hours  after  we  landed,  the  keepers  of 
the  great  St.  Charles  Hotel,  Messrs.  Mudge  &  Waterman, 


322  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

granted  me   the  privilege  of  holding  a  temperance  meeting 
in  the  rotunda,  which  will  take  place  some  day  next  week. 
The  announcement  of  such  a  meeting  has  created  great  ex- 
citement amongst  the  people  for  its  novelty.     You  may  hear 
them  everywhere  in  the  city  say,  "  Is  it  possible  he  is  to  lec- 
ture there  ?     "Why,  it  is  carrying  the  war  right  into  Africa" 
Only  think,  when  I  tell  you  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  splendid 
edifices  I  ever  beheld  in  my  life  anywhere  ;  the  basement  is 
the  drinking  place  ;  there  is  none  above.     I  have  just  come 
from  an  inspection,  and  I  suppose  there  were  not  less  than 
three  hundred  there  drinking  at  the  time.     The  utmost  good 
feeling  prevails  here  in  regard  to  me  and  the  cause,  notwith- 
standing.    I  will  send  you  some  account  of  the  meeting  when 
it  takes  place.     The  general  opinion  is  that  great  good  will 
result  from  it.     I  am  sustained  by  the  very  best  citizens  of  the 
place.    I  had  a  large  number  of  letters  to  the  most  respectable 
merchants  and  others  here,  which  I  obtained  in  Boston,  New 
York,  Baltimore,  Louisville,  Cincinnati,  and  other  places;  these 
have  been  of  great  service  to  me.     This  is  indeed  a  great  city, 
and  is  destined  to  be  the  greatest  in  the  United  States,  if  not, 
in  time,  in  the  world,  in  commerce.     I  was  altogether  de- 
ceived in  the  impressions  formed  from  what  I  had  heard  in 
regard  to  the  peace  and  quiet  of  the  city,  for  great  order  pre- 
vails throughout  the  city  day  and  night,  considering  the  wick- 
edness of  the  place,  composed  as  it  is  of  a  miserable  fluctuating 
population,  pouring  into  it  from  all  the  tributary  streams  that 
form  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  passing  down  in  large  flat-boats 
with  the  produce  of  the  upper  countries.     Besides  these,  it  is 
the  grand  rendezvous  of  gamblers,  pickpockets,  etc.,  to  whom  the 
eyes  of  the  police  are  constantly  directed.     The  police  of  New 
Orleans  are  men  who  are  not  to  be  trifled  with,  I  assure  you. 
The  Sabbath  is  a  day  little  respected  by  the  above  class  of 
men,  and  the  rum-sellers.     Of  course  there  is  a  large  class  of 
highly  respectable  people  here.     Last  Sunday  your  mother 
and  myself  took  a  stroll,  and  to  our  utter  astonishment,  ten-pin 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  323 

alleys,  billiard  tables,  and  card  playing  were  to  be  heard  and 
seen  in  every  part  of  the  city.  And  with  all  this  we  saw  a 
very  few  persons  drunk  in  the  streets  ;  but  enough  of  this. 

The  first  meeting  I.held  was  in  the  Eev.  Mr.  Clapp's  church, 
on  Sunday  night ;  the  house  was  crowded  to  excess.  As  this 
meeting  was  only  introductory  to  a  series  of  meetings,  the 
pledge  was  not  offered  ;  but  a  collection  was  taken  up  for  me, 
which  amounted  to  forty-five  dollars  ;  that  is  a  specimen  of 
southern  liberality. 

We  shall  remain  in  New  Orleans  until  about  the  9th  of  May, 
and  then  take  our  departure  for  Mobile,  where  we  shall  spend 
a  few  days,  and  then  proceed  to  Savannah,  tarry  there  a  few 
days,  say  about  three  or  four,  thence  to  Charleston,  a  few  days 
there,  thence  to  Baltimore,  without  stopping  at  any  other 
place. 

I  shall  now  proceed  to  give  you  some  little  account  of  our 
journey  after  we  left  Evansville,  Ind. ;  you  remember  it  was 
from  that  place  I  wrote  you.  On  the  morning  of  Wednesday, 
April  2d,  at  eight  o'clock,  we  took  passage  in  the*  splendid 
steamer  Harkaway,  Andrews,  master,  for  Memphis,  Tenn., 
distance  four  hundred  and  sixty  miles.  It  was  a  most  pleasant 
and  delightful  passage,  rapidly  merging  into  a  summer  climate, 
which  was  distinctly  evident  to  the  eye  and  feelings.  .  Going  at 
the  rapid  rate  of  more  than  twenty  miles  per  hour,  we  arrived  at 
Memphis  on  Friday,  April  4th,  at  three  o'clock.  In  this  place 
I  delivered  five  addresses  with  much  acceptance  ;  about  one 
hundred  signed  the  pledge.  On  Thursday  noon,  April  10th, 
we  took  passage  in  the  magnificent  steamer  Ambassador,  for 
Vicksburg,  where  we  arrived  about  seven  o'clock  Friday,  llth; 
distance  four  hundred  miles.  The  passage  was  indeed  delight- 
ful. This  place,  you  know,  has  borne  a  most  disreputable 
character,  but  within  the  few  years  past  has  been  almost  en- 
tirely regenerated,  and  has  become  a  most  peaceable  city ;  sel- 
dom i.s  a  drunkard  seen  in  the  streets  by  night  or  day  ;  a  great 
many  signed  the  pledge.  We  remained  in  Vicksburg  until 


324  LIFE   OP  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

Wednesday,  April  16th,  and  then  took  passage  in  the  steamer 
Paul  Jones  for  New  Orleans,  and  arrived  here  on  Friday, 
18th. 

We  are  here  in  the  very  midst  of  a  northern  summer ;  it  is 
rather  warm,  but  most  pleasant.  My  health,  which  you  know 
has  always  been  good,  remains  the  same,  for  which  we  have 
cause  to  be  thankful,  and  that  our  late  passage  down  the  Ohio, 
and  up  its  tributary  streams,  thence  down  the  great  Mississippi, 
the  Father  of  Waters,  has  been  attended  with  not  the  least 
accident,  but  on  the  contrary  has  been  one  of  the  most  pleasant 
passages  we  have  ever  had.  May  the  Lord  preserve  us  in 
safety  to  see  each  other,  which  I  hope  will  be  about  the  last 
of  June,  at  the  farthest.  I  received  a  letter  when  we  arrived 
at  Natchez  from  your  grandmother,  in  answer  to  a  letter  I 
wrote  to  her  from  Louisville.  She  writes  that  your  grandfather 
is  not  in  good  health.  The  rest  of  the  family  were  well. 
You  know  we  are  amongst  something  of  a  French  people,  and 
you  would  be  astonished  at  the  progress  your  mother  makes  in 
speaking  "  Parlez  vous  Francais." 

My  dear  son,  persevere  in  your  studies  ;  I  will  do  all  I  can 
for  you  ;  you  have  my  prayers  that  God  may  keep  you.  The 
sums  I  expect  to  receive  will  enable  me  to  carry  on  your  edu- 
cation independently.  I  forgot  to  mention  that  Gilbert  Hawk- 
ins is  a  commission  merchant  in  this  place  ;  he  is  a  cousin  of 
mine,  son  of  Aunt  Mary  Hawkins.  He  is  a  true  gentleman  ; 
he  has  treated  me  very  kindly  ;  we  have  dined  with  him  ;  he 
lives  in  very  elegant  style.  There  are  a  great  many  Baltimo- 
reans  here,  many  of  them  my  old  acquaintances.  I  regret  that 
my  sheet  is  so  small,  for  I  have  as  much  more  that  I  should 
like  to  have  communicated  to  you  ;  but  let  the  present  suffice ; 
you  shall  hear  from  me  again.  You  need  not  answer  this,  as  I 
do  not  know  where  you  should  direct  your  letter.  If  any  thing 
should  happen  that  should  make  it  necessary  for  you  to  write, 
direct  to  Charleston. 

Your  father  in  the  holy  bonds  of  love, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN    11.    W.    HAWKINS.  325 

The  foregoing  letters  do  not,  of  course,  convey  an 
adequate  idea  of  the  amount  of  labor  performed  by 
Mr.  Hawkins  in  the  West  and  South,  written  as  they 
were  especially  for  the  purpose  of  affording  pleasure  to 
his  relatives,  and  not  with  the  remotest  idea  that  they 
would  ever  meet  the  public  eye.  The  extent  of  those 
labors  can  be  in  some  degree  ascertained  by  a  recur- 
rence to  his  journal.  It  is  much  regretted  by  the  com- 
piler that  the  files  of  newspapers  which  he  once  had, 
containing  many  interesting  particulars  connected 
with  his  father's,  visits  to  the  different  cities  named, 
have  been  lost. 

After  leaving  Baltimore  on  his  journey,  he  lectured 
one  evening  in  Cumberland,  Md.,  from  which  place  he 
went  to  Pittsburg,  where,  and  in  Alleghany  City,  he 
spent  six  days,  lecturing  to  crowded  houses,  and  obtain- 
ing a  large  number  of  pledges.  At  Steubenville  he  lec- 
tured three  times  in  different  churches;  arriving  in 
Wheeling,  Va.,  his  former  place  of  business  in  1828- 
29-30,  he  lectured  in  the  City  Hall  on  three  occa- 
sions, arousing  public  feeling  on  the  subject  of  temper- 
ance to  an  astonishing  degree.  He  left  Wheeling  on 
the  28th  of  December,  1844,  and  reached  Cincinnati  on 
the  31st.  Several  days  were  occupied  in  making  the 
necessary  arrangements  for  his  lectures  in  that  city.  He 
commenced  his  labors  in  the  Methodist  Church  on 
Sixth  Street.  On  the  6th  of  January,  1845,  he  lectured 
to  a  large  audience  in  the  Presbyterian  Church ;  this 
was  the  beginning  of  a  great  work,  which  extended 
into  the  surrounding  villages.  A  large  amount  of  good, 
it  is  true,  had  been  acomplished  previous  to  his  coming ; 
still  he  succeeded  in  quickening  the  energies  of  the 
people  to  the  accomplishment  of  still  more.  He  lee- 


326  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

tured  on  six  occasions  in  the  city,  once  at  Fulton,  and 
once  at  Newport  and  Covington.  We  quote  from  his 
journal :  — 

Left  Cincinnati,  January  15th,  for  Madison  ;  visited  Bedford, 
Ky.,  my  old  place  of  residence  in  1819, 1820,  and  1821.  18th, 
returned  to  Madison.  Lectured  in  the  Wesleyan  Chapel ;  two 
hundred  and  forty-four  signed.  Great  interest  awakened  among 
the  children;  one  hundred  and  two  pledged  themselves  to 
total  abstinence. 

Left  Madison  for  Indianapolis.  Lectured  23d,  24th,  and 
25th  to  overflowing  audiences ;  much  interest ;  three  hundred 
and  twenty-seven  signed  during  my  stay  here. 

At  this  stage  of  this  memoir  it  will  not  be  inappropri- 
ate to  insert  the  following  communication  received  by 
the  compiler  from  a  highly-respected  gentleman  now 
resident  in  Maine.  It  will  sufficiently  explain  itself:  — 

BANGOR,  Maine,  Sept.  20, 1858. 

EEV.  WM.  G.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir,  —  Although  a  stranger 
you  will  pardon  this  hasty  note.  Thirteen  or  fourteen  years 
ago  I  was  resident  in  Indianapolis,  and  had  charge  of  the  edito- 
rial columns  of  the  Indiana  State  Journal  The  Rev.  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  was  then  a  settled  minister  there ;  from  which 
place  he  was  transferred  to  Brooklyn,  New  York,  a  few  years 
after. 

Seeing  in  the  Boston  Journal  a  day  or  two  ago  a  notice  of 
your  being  in  that  city,  with  a  view  to  the  publication  of  some 
memoir  of  your  respected  father,  I  have  thought  it  might  gratify 
you  to  know  the  impression  made  on  his  first  visit  to  Indianap- 
olis. I  have  been  able  to  lay  my  hand  on  a  copy  of  the  Indi- 
ana State  Journal  of  January  29th,  1845,  and  find  the  two  en- 
closed articles  on  the  subject ;  one  is  editorial,  from  my  own 
pen,  and  the  other,  with  the  appended  initial  "  B.,"  it  will 


LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  327 

gratify  you  to  know,  was  written  by  Mr.  Beecher.  It  was,  I 
have  reason  to  know,  a  hearty  tribute  from  that  even  then  dis- 
tinguished man  ;  it  will  be  even  more  appreciated  now  in  the 
fulness  of  his  well-earned  fame.  * 

Very  respectfully,  your  friend,  &c., 

GEORGE  KENT. 

The  following  are  the  articles  referred  to  in  the  fore- 
going letter :  — 

JOHN  HAWKINS  IN  INDIANAPOLIS.  —  Mr.  Hawkins  is  now 
for  the  first  time  on  a  vi^it  to  the  far  West,  and  has  lectured 
here  several  times  since  his  arrival  to  thronged  and  deeply  af- 
fected auditories.  He  leaves  this  day,  we  understand,  for  Louis- 
ville, St.  Louis,  New  Orleans,  &c.  Wherever  he  goes,  the 
prayers  and  ardent  aspirations  of  thousands  for  his  success  will 
go  with  him.  There  is  something  in  the  native  eloquence  of 
this  reformed  inebriate  which  comes  directly  home  to  men's 
business  and  bosoms.  Rarely  have  we  heard  an  address  of 
more  power  than  his  opening  one  of  Saturday  evening.  His 
off-hand  discourse  of  an  hour  and  a  half  seemed  to  us,  from  its 
exceeding  interest,  of  scarce  half  that  length.  If  any  of  our 
friends,  temperate  or  intemperate,  want  to  Mil  time,  let  them 
go  and  hear  Hawkins  and  Gough  whenever  they  have  oppor- 
tunity. As  natural  seed  is  quickened  in  the  earth  and  made 
fruitful  only  by  dying  —  so,  by  thus  killing  of  time,  moral  seed 
may  germinate,  and  the  fruits  of  "  righteousness  and  temper- 
ance "  be  matured  for  a  happy  "  judgment  to  come,"  and  for  a 
glorious  eternity. 

We  have  the  pleasure  and  profit  of  a  visit  from  John  Hawk- 
in-,  one  of  fhe  original  Baltimore  Washingtonians.  Mr.  H.  is 
a  man  naturally  of  sound  mind,  of  a  good  heart,  and  fine  per- 
sonal bearing.  If  any  man  can  hear  Mr.  Hawkins'  "  experi- 
.•iic('"  with  dry  ryes,  he  must  huvo  a  very  dry  heart.  Some- 
tiling  fastidious  about  such  things  ourselves,  we,  ii«verllieli-ss 


328  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

cried  enough  in  one  night  to  answer  for  a  dozen  ordinary  occa- 
sions. Indeed,  we  were  brought  to  a  very  awkward  condition. 
We  gave  ourselves  up  entirely  to  our  feelings,  and  were  crying 
with  great  relish,  until  he  came  to  that  scene  where  his  young 
daughter  covered  him  with  her  little  bed-clothes,  one  night 
when  hr  was  thrust  into  his  entry  dead-drunk,  and  put  a  pillow 
under  his  head -ana  tliL'n  lay  down  by  his  side.  This  was  nar- 
rated with  such  simplicity  and  touching  grace  that  we  could 
only  by  violent  effort  refrain  from  a  downright  oriental  lamen- 
tation. Three  or  four  boys  in  the  seat  before  us  squared  round, 
and  regarding  us  as  the  more  interesting  spectacle  of  the  two, 
leaned  on  their  elbows  and  systematically  watched  our  progress. 
Even  this  surveillance  did  not  break  the  charm  of  this  able 
speaker.  All  the  temperance  speeches  that  we  ever  heard  (our 
own  thrown  in  to  boot)  have  not  affected  us  so  much  as  the 
opening  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins.  B.  . 


CHAPTER     XX 

"  He  entered  upon  his  work,  in  the  spirit  of  the  memorable  line  — 

'  Non  ignara  mali,  miseris  succurrere  disco.' 

If  we  hesitate,  in  regard  to  the  inebriates  whose  reformation  he. effected, 
to  employ  a  strong  Catholic  expression,  and  say  he  '  had  the  key  to  their 
souls,'  he  certainly  opened  their  hearts  by  opening  his  own  ;  and  led  them, 
by  his  happy  example,  to  forsake  their  miserable  ways." 

MR.  HAWKINS  returned  by  the  cars  to  Madison,  and 
proceeded  thence,  by  the  Ohio  river,  to  Lawrence  burg, 
where  he  lectured  three  successive  days ;  one  hundred 
and  thirty-eight  pledges  were  taken.  On  the  4th  of 
February  he  lectured  at  Aurora  ;  the  next  day  at  Rising 
Sun.  On  the  6th  he  took  the  steamer  for  Louisville, 
Ky.,  where,  by  special  invitation,  he  spent  five  days, 
lecturing  on  temperance  at  night,  and  visiting  the  unfor- 
tunate victims  of  intemperance  during  the  day.  On 
the  14th  and  15th  we  find  him  again  at  Cincinnati,  la- 
boring zealously  in  the  good  cause.  The  remainder  of 
the  month  his  labors  were  distributed  among  the  fol- 
lowing places  :  "  The  Salines  "  at  Kanawha  three  days ; 
at  Charleston,  Ky.,  two,  and  several  at  Maysville. 

On  the  first  of  March  he  returned  to  Cincinnati, 
where  he  met  Mrs.  Hawkins,  whom  several  months 
before  he  had  left  in  Maryland.  He  found  her  in  the 
care  of  the  Hon.  Thomas  H.  Benton,  who  recognized 
her  in  the  cars  at  Cumberland,  and  finding  her  without 
an  escort,  very  kindly  volunteered  his  services  to  see 
her  safely  on  to  ( -iiiciiiiiati.  At  Cumberland  the  party 
chartered  an  extra  stage,  and  proceeded  to  the  Ohio, 

28*  (329) 


330  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

where  they  took  steamer.  Mr.  Hawkins  discovered 
Mr.  Benton  on  the  boat  before  the  landing  was  reached, 
and  expecting  that  his  wife  was  on  board,  inquired  of 
him  as  soon  as  he  could  be  heard,  "  Have  you  not  a 
live  package  there  for  me,  sir  ?  "  Mr.  Benton  evaded 
the  question  by  replying,  "  Come  aboard  and  we  will 
see."  They  accordingly  proceeded  to  the  cabin,  where 
he  introduced  the  parties  as  if  they  had  been  strangers 
to  each  other.  Mr.  Hawkins,  of  course,  expressed  him- 
self in  very  grateful  terms  to  Mr.  Benton  for  this  char- 
acteristic act  of  politeness. 

After  lecturing  five  days  in  Lexington  and  Frank- 
fort, Ky.,  he  left  for  Madison  and  Louisville,  in  which 
places  he  delivered  five  lectures  to  interested  congrega- 
tions. After  spending  two  days  in  New  Albany,  he 
took  the  steamer  for  Vincennes,  Ind.  Lecturing  there 
three  days  to  well-filled  houses,  he  left  by  stage  for 
Evansville,  where  he  remained,  laboring  with  much 
success,  until  April  2d. 

His  first  lecture  at  New  Orleans  was  delivered  in 
Rev.  Mr.  Clapp's  church,  on  Poidras  Street ;  on  the 
22d  the  seamen  of  the  port  were  called  out  to  hear 
him  in  t,he  Bethel.  We  next  find  him  at  Armory  Hall; 
on  Sunday,  27th,  he  lectured  to  the  colored  people ;  on 
the  30th  at  Algiers.  On  the  first  of  May  the  inter- 
est in  the  city  had  greatly  increased.  He  lectured 
every  evening  up  to  the  5th,  either  in  New  Orleans 
or  in  the  town  of  Algiers,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  Mississippi;  on  that  day  he  took  steamer  and 
crossed  Lake  Pontchartrain  to  Covington,  in  which 
place  he  lectured  to  crowded  houses  on  two  occasions. 
He  returned  to  New  Orleans  on  the  8th.  The  very 
novel  announcement  that  he  was  to  lecture  in  the  ro- 


LIFE   OP   JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS.  331 

tunda  of  the  great  St.  Charles  Hotel,  drew  together  an 
immense  crowd.  The  occasion  was  noticed  in  the 
papers  as  one  of  great  interest,  which  Mr.  Hawkins 
knew  well  how  to  use  for  advancing  the  interests  of 
temperance  and  humanity.  Having  concluded  his  en- 
gagement at  New  Orleans,  he  took  the  steamer  Monte- 
zuma  for  Mobile,  Ala.,  where  he  lectured  on  the  13th 
and  14th  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  ;  and  also 
upon  the  two  following  days  in  the  Baptist  Church. 
On  the  17th  he  left  Mobile  for  Montgomery,  the  capital 
of  the  State,  where  he  lectured  with  much  profit,  to 
well-filled  houses,  on  the  20th,  21st,  and  22d.  Proceed- 
ing thence  by  railroad  and  stage,  he  reached  Charles- 
ton, S.  C.,  on  Saturday  evening,  May  24th. 

Here  he  was  welcomed  by  a  host  of  temperance 
friends,  whose  hearts  were  cheered  and  encouraged  on 
several  public  occasions,  as  he  detailed  the  progress  of 
the  reform  in  all  parts  of  the  land.  He  delivered  sev- 
eral lectures  in  the  Temperance  Hall.  On  the  29th  he 
visited  the  barracks  at  Fort  Moultrie,  on  Sullivan's 
Island,  and  addressed  the  officers  and  soldiers.  On 
the  4th  of  June  he  left  Charleston  for  Baltimore,  and 
reached  that  place  on  the  6th.  He  delivered  several 
addresses  during  his  stay  in  Baltimore,  which  contin- 
ued until  the  30th  day  of  July.  On  his  way  to  Boston 
he  lectured  in  Philadelphia,  New  York,  Middletown, 
Ct,  and  at  Wilbraham. 

From  Boston  he  went  to  Portland,  Me.,  where  he 
spent  several  days  ;  on  his  return  he  found  invitations 
awaiting  him  to  lecture  in  various  parts  of  New  Eng- 
land. Between  the  first  of  September  and  the  first, 
of  November  he  visited  and  lectured  with  great  accep- 
tance in  twenty-eight  towns,  closing  with  New  Bed- 


332  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

ford  and  Providence.  On  the  1st  of  November,  being 
in  New  York,  he  was  called  upon  by  the  friends  of 
temperance  from  Morris  County,  N.  J.,  and  entered 
into  an  engagement  to  canvass  every  town  within  its 
borders.  The  following  are  among  the  places  men- 
tioned in  his  journal  where  large  audiences  were  ad- 
dressed and  great  interest  awakened :  Rockaway, 
Dover,  Berkshire  Valley,  Morristown,  New  Vernon, 
Greenville,  Pine  Brook,  Whippany,  Madison,  Morris 
Plains,  Littletown,  Montville,  Boonton,  Newfoundland, 
Snufftown,  Suckasunny,  Flanders,  Mount  Freedom, 
Mendam,  Chester,  Schooley's  Mountain,  German  Val- 
ley, Hanover,  Parsippany,  and  again  at  Rockaway. 
His  visit  to  Morris  County  was  spoken  of  many  years 
after  as  being  one  of  great  value  to  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance. 

On  the  1st  of  December  Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to 
Boston  and  rested  until  the  8th  of  the  month.  After 
spending  the  intermediate  time  in  addressing  good 
audiences  in  Charlestown,  Greenwich,  R.  I.,  South 
Kingston,  Newport,  Fall  River,  and  a  number  of  other 
places,  he  returned  home  to  enjoy  with  his  family  the 
Christmas  holidays.  The  compiler  of  this  memoir 
was  at  home  at  that  time,  and  there  became  acquainted 
with  the  individual  from  whom  he  subsequently  re- 
ceived the  following  letter,  and  whose  singular  history 
is  detailed  in  the  letter  which  follows  it. 

It  would  enlarge  this  volume  very  much  beyond  the 
limits  contemplated,  were  we  to  collect  the  many  in- 
stances of  wonderful  reformations  that  occurred  during 
the  labors  of  Mr.  Hawkins  in  various  parts  of  the 
country,  comparatively  few  of  which,  indeed,  have  ever 
found  their  way  into  the  public  prints.  Thousands 


LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

have  been  blessed  and  saved  whom  the  subject  of  this 
memoir  has  never  seen  on  earth.  Many  of  these  now, 
doubtless,  form  jewels  in  the  crown  of  his  rejoicing  in 
the  sanctuary  above.  The  reformation  of  Stephen  R. 
Hunt,  Esq.  attracted  much  attention  at  the  time ;  and, 
so  far  as  we  know,  he  has  continued  steadfast  to  the 
end.  The  following  is  the  letter  above  referred  to  ;  it 
was  written  to  the  compiler  soon  after  his  return  to 
college  in  February,  1846  : — 

(STEPHEN  R.  HUNT  TO  w.  G.  HAWKINS.) 

ROXBURY,  MASS.,  Feb.  12,  1S46. 

Mr  DEAR  SIR,  — I  ought  to  have  written  you  upon  my 
return  from  the  Cape,  but  circumstances  have  prevented. 
Your  father  had  a  very  gratifying  time  on  the  Cape.* 
came  home  greatly  fatigued,  and  have  since  then  been  to 
Taunton  and  North  Brighton.  At  the  latter  place  I  procured 
forty-nine  subscribers  to  the  "  cold-water  petition,"  which  at 
some  future  day  we  intend  to  present  to  the  court  at  the  trial 
of  "  King  Alcohol ; "  after  a  little  time  we  will  have  evidence 
enough  to  condemn  him,  at  any  rate  before  the  "  court  of  con- 
science." 

I  feel  very  thankful  that  my  faculties  are  slowly  returning. 
O  sir,  it  takes  a  deal  of  time  for  Memory  to  resume  her  seat, 
and  Reason  to  take  the  throne  from  which  she  has  been  hurled 
by  that  remorseless  tyrant  whose  victim  I  have  been  for  so 

*  In  turning  to  Mr.  Hawkins'  journal  wo  find  that  he  visited  the  fol- 
lowing places  between  the  10th  of  January  and  the  1st  of  March  :  Prov- 
im-cuwn  Truro,  Wellfleet,  Orleans,  Chatham,  Harwich,  South  Dennis, 
Brewster,  Yarmouth  Port,  Bamstable,  Hyannis,  Centrevillo,  Oysterville, 
Marston  Mills,  Marshpee,  East  Falmouth,  Falmouth,  North  Falmouth, 
Monmouth,  Sandwich,  Ncponsct,  Plymouth,  Wareham,  West  Barnstable, 
South  and  North  Dennis,  and  Brewster.  In  the  month  of  March  ho  \  ig- 
i.,.,1  iiolm.-s  Hole,  Bdgartown,  Wu«,ds  Hole,  Falniouth,  Sandwich,  Taim- 
ton,  Stoughton,  and  Cautou.  March  31st,  rest. 


334  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

many  years.  But,  thanks  be  to  God,  with  his  assistance  I  will 
make  war  against  that  "  hydra  monster,  rum,"  until  the  time 
of  my  departure  arrives.  Whether  I  return  to  the  bar  or  not, 
I  am  a  soldier  for  life  in  that  war  from  which  I  do  not  wish  to 
be  discharged. 

Your  father  is  now  on  the  Cape ;  he  will  return  in  one  week, 
we  expect ;  meanwhile  I  am  on  my  oars.  Oh !  how  I  do 
rejoice  that  I  ever  saw  him  in  New  Jersey,  and  that  it  was 
put  into  my  heart  to  come  to  Massachusetts  to  live ;  for  now 
I  know  something  about  living,  when  before  I  was  dead.  I 
believe  my  faculties  will  be  again  restored,  and  if  so,  I  will 
pull  all  the  hair  from  the  head  of  "  King  Alcohol,"  as  he  has 
from  mine. 

*  *  *  I  wish  I  had  my  collegiate  course  to  go  through 
again.  I  think  I  would  redeem  the  time,  or  if  I  could  have 
the  same  opportunity  again  to  study  my  profession,  I  think  I 
would  improve  every  hour.  Oh !  sir,  you  have  the  opportunity; 
look  out  to  be  wise,  and  count  the  moments  as  they  pass ;  you 
never  again  will  have  the  same  opportunity  you  now  have. 

In  haste  (your  sister  will  write  soon).  I  must  be  off  to 
Dorchester.  Write  to  me. 

Yours,  respectfully, 

STEPHEN  R.  HUNT. 

(JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS    TO    MRS.    SCHAEFFER.) 

ROXBURY,  Feb.  20th,  1846, 

MY  MUCH  BELOVED  SISTER  FRANCES,  —  Your  very  wel- 
come and  gratifying  letter,  dated  Feb.  13th,  now  lies  before  me. 
I  have  just  returned  from  a  second  visit  to  Barnstable  County, 
which  embraces  all  the  towns,  thirteen  in  number,  comprising 
that  noted  part  of  Massachusetts  called  Cape  Cod.  A  more 
hospitable  people  I  never  travelled  among.  I  spent  the  month 
of  January,  in  connection  with  Mr.  Stephen  R.  Hunt,  of  New 
Jersey,  lecturing  to  them,  but  was  prevented  from  filling  all 
the  appointments  I  had  made  in  consequence  of  a  most  dread- 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  335 

ful  snow-storm  and  gale,  which  weather  found  me  at  the  town 
of  Harwich,  where  I  was  delayed  several  days.  I  came  home 
for  a  short  time,  and  then  returned  to  fill  the  balance  of  my 
appointments. 

I  have  mentioned  the  name  of  Stephen  K.  Hunt,  Esq.,  of 
New  Jersey ;  you  may  have  seen  his  name  connected  with  mine 
in  some  of  the  papers  that  I  sent  you.  It  will  no  doubt  be 
interesting  to  you  for  me  to  give  some  account  of  him  and  the 
circumstances  of  his  connection  with  me.  They  are  as  fol- 
lows: First,  he  is  thirty-seven  years  of  age,  and  has  a  wife  and 
three  children  in  Chester,  N.  J.  At  the  solicitation  of  the  ex- 
ecutive committee  of  the  "  County  Temperance  Society,"  I 
made  an  appointment  at  Chester,  his  native  village,  where  he 
then  resided  with  his  family ;  they  had  been  separated  at  one 
time  for  nine  long  years ;  they  had  come  together  about  eight- 
teen  months  ago,  upon  the  condition  that  he  would  change  his 
habits.  Poor  fellow,  he  tried  hard,  but  to  no  purpose,  for  the 
reason  that  he  was  surrounded  with  temptation,  in  connection 
with  his  old  bottle  companions,  who  caused  him  to  break  all  the 
good  resolutions  which  he  had  made  to  do  better.  He  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  it  was  of  no  use  to  try  any  more,  and  gave 
himself  up  as  lost  (thank  Heaven  there  is  hope  for  the  poor 
unfortunate  drunkard).  The  night  at  last  arrived  on  which  I 
was  to  lecture  in  his  village  (Sabbath  evening).  I  gave  my 
discourse  a  strong  religious  character  ;  it  had  the  desired  effect. 
At  the  close  of  the  address  I  gave  the  invitation  to  all  present, 
who  felt  disposed,  to  come  forward  and  sign  the  pledge.  He 
was  (he  first  man  upon  his  feet.  He  walked  up  like  a  man 
(for  he  is  as  fine  a  looking  fellow  as  you  ever  saw)  ;  the  vast 
congregation  —  the  house  was  crowded  to  excess  —  looked  per- 
fedly  astonished.  There  seemed  to  be  but  one  feeling  among 
the  people,  and  that  was,  Poor  fellow,  he  cannot  keep  the 
pledge. 

The  next  morning,  early,  he  came  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stowten- 
burg's,  with  whom   I  was  stopping,  for  the  purpose  of  having 


336  LIFE   OF   JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

an  interview  with  me.  After  having  been  introduced  to  me, 
we  had  some  little  conversation,  when  he  burst  into  a  flood  of 
tears,  and  exclaimed,  with  uplifted  hands,  and  in  the  most  elo- 
quent and  feeling  manner,  enough  to  move  the  most  obdurate 
heart,  "  Mr.  Hawkins,  what  shall  I  do  ?  I  cannot  stay  reformed 
here,  surrounded  as  I  am  with  temptations  and  tempters  on 
every  hand,  who  have  already  declared  that  they  will  do  all 
they  can  to  make  me  break  my  pledge."  At  this  moment  the 
scene  was  truly  distressing ;  the  minister  and  his  wife  wept  and 
sobbed  aloud ;  I  could  not,  of  course,  keep  from  joining  in  with 
them.  I  bade  him  look  to  God  for  help  ;  to  put  his  trust  in  him  ; 
he  was  able  to  save  to  the  uttermost.  After  awhile  he  became 
composed,  and  more  conversation  ensued.  I  then  proposed  to 
take  him  with  me  to  Roxbury,  where  he  would  be  away  from 
his  companions,  and  would  not  be  so  exposed  to  temptation. 
This  proposal  broke  in  upon  his  mind  like  a  sunbeam.  It 
would  have  done  you  good  to  see  the  sudden  change  it  wrought 
upon  him ;  his  keen  eye  flashed  eloquence.  "  That  is  it,  Mr. 
Hawkins,"  said  he ;  "  if  you  will  do  that,  then  there  will  be 
hope."  He  remained  at  home  two  weeks,  until  I  had  finished 
my  engagements ;  he  then  met  me,  by  engagement,  at  Rocka- 
way,  where  the  County  Temperance  Convention  was  being 
held.  How  changed  he  was  !  How  well  he  looked !  He  had 
kept  his  pledge ! 

At  the  close  of  the  Convention  we  took  passage  for  this 
place.  He  took  board  with  me,  remaining  in  the  family,  read- 
ing and  studying  for  six  weeks,  while  I  was  lecturing  in  Rhode 
Island  and  in  some  parts  of  Massachusetts.  During  my  ab- 
sence he  spoke  several  times  in  Roxbury  and  the  adjacent 
towns,  with  great  acceptance.  William  George  was  spending 
the  vacation  with  us  ;  he  will  never  forget  the  many  pleasant 
interviews  he  had  with  Stephen  R.  Hunt,  for  he  is  a  perfect 
gentleman,  now  he  is  a  sober  man. 

By  previous  arrangements  with  the  friends  of  temperance  I 
had  made  appointments  in  all  the  towns  on  the  Cape.  Mr. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  337 

Hunt  and  myself  took  passage  in  a  packet  for  Provincetown. 
"We  arrived  there  January  10th,  and  immediately  commenced 
our  labors  of  lecturing,  he  following  and  lecturing  every 
evening  after  me.  The  people  were  much  pleased  with  him, 
he  exhibiting  a  mind  of  no  ordinary  talent.  He  is  certainly  a 
good  speaker,  and  a  great  acquisition  to  the  cause  of  humanity, 
for  this  is  the  light  in  which  we  Yankees  look  upon  the  holy 
cause  of  temperance.  He  has  written  for  his  wife  to  come  on ; 
she  will  be  here  next  week.  Their  children  will,  for  the  pres- 
ent, go  to  Summerville,  N.  J.,  to  live  with  his  mother-in-law, 
who  is  very  wealthy  and  respectable,  as  also  are  the  most  of  his 
relatives. 

During  his  stay  on  the  Cape  he  received  very  handsome 
contributions.  I  should  have  said  before  this  that  he  had  run 
through  a  large  fortune,  and  when  I  met  him  at  Chester  he  had 
not  one  cent.  I  supplied  his  family  with  money,  paid  his 
passage  on  here,  etc.,  all  of  which  he  has  paid  back  to  me. 
My  dear  sister,  is  it  not  a  great  work  thus  to  be  engaged,  in 
raising  up  fallen  men,  and  be  the  humble  instrument  in  the 
hands  of  God  in  doing  good  ?  God  has  promised  a  reward 
for  such  acts,  yea,  he  has  already  rewarded  me,  and  there  is  a 
greater  one  for  me  when  my  labor  on  earth  is  finished.  "When 
I  look  back  on  my  past  life  my  heart  sickens  within  me,  and  it 
would  stay  sick  were  it  not  that  I  am  privileged  to  look  on  a 
fairer  picture.  Oh !  the  change  in  me,  in  my  family,  in  the 
feelings  of  my  dear  relatives  toward  me ;  yea,  more,  a  recon- 
ciled God.  My  hope  of  heaven  —  this  is  my  privilege,  your 
privilege,  the  privilege  of  us  all ;  let  us  then  strive  for  it,  my 
dear  sister. 

In  one  of  the  papers  I  sent  you  the  other  day  you  will  see 
an  interesting  account  of  one  John  Hawkins  (not  John  H.  W.)  ; 
he  is  doing  well.  He  is  a  good-looking  man  ;  he  can  talk,  and 
we  think  of  trying  to  make  a  lecturer  of  him  ;  that  is  the  way 
we  do  here.  When  we  find  a  man  that  has  talent  and  moral 
worth,  we  do  what  we  can  to  make  him  useful  among  his  fellow- 

29 


338  LIFE  OP  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

men.  He  then  answers  the  object  for  which  he  was  created. 
We  shall  want  all  the  laborers  we  can  get.  The  great  "  rum 
case  "  of  a  Mr.  Thurlow,  a  rum-seller,  who  has  appealed  to  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  will  be  decided  in  favor 
of  the  good  old  Bay  State  we  think,  next  week ;  then  will 
come  the  "  tug  of  war." 

I  will  now  tell  you  of  an  incident  that  occurred  a  short  time 
since,  which  will  no  doubt  be  pleasing  to  you  ;  it  was  truly  so 
to  me  ;  it  was  so  unexpected,  and  came  in  such  good  time. 
The  circumstances  are  the  following:  The  family  being  in 
need  of  some  dry  goods,  I  went  to  the  wholesale  store  of  a 
wealthy  merchant,  a  well-known  temperance  man  here,  for  the 
purpose  of  getting  remnants,  thinking  they  would  be  cheaper. 
This  gentleman  knew  me,  and  after  looking  about  he  said  he 
had  no  remnants  but  plenty  of  whole  pieces.  He  commenced 
taking  them  down,  and  requested  me  to  select  for  myself.  I  told 
him  I  did  not  wish  to  go  too  high.  He  said,  in  a  jocose  manner, 
'<  There  is  no  danger  of  that,  for  you  are  a  short  man."  I  made 

my  selection  for  jacket,  vest,  and  pants  for  A ,  and  he  cut 

them  off.  "While  doing  so  I  discovered  him  eyeing  my  faded 
coat.  I  asked  him  the  price  of  the  articles.  Said  he,  looking 
me  in  the  face,  "  I  shall  charge  them  to  temperance  ; "  and 
turning  round  he  pulled  from  the  shelf  a  most  beautiful  piece 
of  black  cloth,  proceeded  to  cut  from  it  material  for  coat  and 
pants,  and  then  from  a  piece  of  black  velvet  a  vest.  "  There,'' 
said  he,  "  I  make  you  a  present  of  that,  for  it  was  you  who 
brought  back  to  me  and  his  mother  our  son  ;  and  he  is  now  a 
sober  man  ;"  pointing  to  him  at  the  desk,  he  said,  "  he  is  a 
good  boy  and  a  pious  Christian." 

We  are  to  have  a  great  time  here  Tuesday,  the  24th  inst ; 
that  day  is  set  apart  for  simultaneous  meetings  throughout  the 
world.  The  Parent  Female  Total  Abstinence  Society  of  Bos- 
ton, of  which  Mrs.  John  II.  W.  Hawkins  is  President,  will 
hold  a  levee  at  Tremont  Temple ;  it  will  be  a  grand  affair. 
The  society  is  supported  by  the  most  respectable  females  in 


LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  339 

Boston,  and  they  seem  pleased  that  my  wife  is  their  chief 
officer,  for  they  place  much  confidence  in  her.  It  may  seem 
strange  to  you  to  hear  of  a  female  presiding  at  a  temperance 
meeting  ;  it  is  an  ordinary  thing  here.  How  I  wish  you  could 
be  here  on  that  occasion.  We  shall  soon  remove  into  Boston, 
and  go  to  housekeeping,  and  I  intend  to  have  a  spare  bed,  a 
plate,  knife,  and  fork,  and  when  I  come  to  Baltimore  I  shall 
extend  to  you  an  invitation  to  return  with  me  to  Boston,  by 
way  of  Middletown,  Ct.,  and  spend  a  few  weeks  here  at  my 
expense ;  which  would  be  to  me  and  mine  a  source  of  great 
satisfaction.  I  shall  send  you  papers  next  week  giving  some 
account  of  our  doings  on  Tuesday ;  shall  forward  you  papers 
from  time  to  time,  when  they  contain  matter  worth  reading, 
also  packages  of  tracts  when  private  opportunities  offer.  Ex- 
cuse the  length  of  this  letter ;  I  had  so  much  on  my  mind  to 
say,  and  there  was  no  other  way  of  communicating  it  but  by 
writing.  When  I  come  to  Baltimore  I  will  give  you  more  of 
my  company  ;  that  is,  if  ih$  fish  don't  bite. 

Affectionately,  your  brother,  JOHN. 

So  incessant  had  been  Mr.  Hawkins'  labors,  so  wide 
apart  had  been  his  fields  of  labor,  and  so  much  was  his 
family  scattered,  that  it  was  not  until  this  period,  since 
his  reformation,  that  he  found  himself  in  a  situation 
where  he  could  gather  his  family  around  him  in  his 
own  home.  That  he  was  not  insensible  to  the  charms 
of  "  sweet  home  "  the  following  letter  will  disclose  :  — 

BOSTON,  March  12th,  1846. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER  FRANCES,  —  I  sit  down  to  write  you, 
but  not  a  long  letter.  The  object  of  my  writing  at  this  time  is 
to  inform  yon  and  our  dear  friends  and  relatives,  that  we  have 
moved  into  Boston,  and  have  commenced  housekeeping.  \Ve 
have  taken  a  comfortable  house,  in  a  pleasant  part  of  the  eily 
called  the  "  North  End."  Immediately  in  the  rear  of  the 


340  LIFE   OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

house,  is  Christ  Church  (Episcopal),  whose  eight  bells  chime 
most  sweetly  on  every  Sabbath  morning.  On  last  Sabbath 
morning  and  afternoon  they  played  more  sweetly  than  ever, 
if  possible,  more  than  a  dozen  tunes.  As  I  sat  in  my  room 
listening,  every  sound  brought  back  to  my  mind  early  memo- 
ries of  "  Old  Christ  Church  bells  "  *  in  my  own  dear  native 
city.  How  pleasant,  and  yet  how  painful  it  is,  to  think  of  the 
past ;  especially  is  it  sad  to  look  back  upon  an  ill-spent  life. 
Yet  how  pleasant  is  the  reflection  that  the  good  Providence  of 
God  has  kept  us  through  the  evil  as  well  as  the  good ;  has 
spared  our  lives  and  so  changed  our  (my)  circumstances.  This 
thought  indeed  brings  to  me  a  pleasure  that  cannot  be  esti- 
mated or  expressed.  Such  joys  can  be  felt  if  they  cannot  be 
expressed. 

Oh,  how  delightful  it  is  in  our  own  home  to  call  our  family  to- 
gether, and  around  our  own  family  altar,  "  under  our  own  vine 
and  fig-tree,"  worship  God,  —  none  daring  to  make  us  afraid. 
My  dear  sister,  that  it  is  indeed  pleasant  to  live  under  the  smiles 
of  a  reconciled  God  and  Father,  you  know  by  experience.  He 
has  kept  you  in  the  trying  hour ;  he  has  poured  into  your  soul 
the  healing  balm  of  his  divine  spirit.  Let  us  strive  on,  ever 
living  for,  and  looking  to  God  for  deliverance  ;  it  wilksurely 
come,  and  if  faithful  we  shall  triumph  over  all,  and  live  with 
him  forever.  All  here  are  well  and  desire  to  be  remembered  to 
dear  relatives  and  friends  ;  to  all,  without  going  to  the  trouble  of 
naming  them,  except  dear  little  "  Jimmy  "  [Mr.  Hawkins  Avas 
always  affected  to  tenderness  towards  children  who  had  lost  a 
parent  as  this  child  had]  ;  I  must  name  him.  I  wish  his  name 
was  John,  but  it  don't  make  much  difference ;  he  was  named 
after  a  much  better  man,  who  no  doubt  lives  with  God  in 
heaven. 

I  came  near  forgetting  to  state  that  I  have  that  spare  room, 

*  These  were  the  bells  that  Mr.  Hawkins  had  hoard  from  his  early 
youth  ;  they  are  noted  for  their  surpassing  sweetness,  and  have  been  re- 
tained in  the  new  edifice  of  Christ  Church  parish,  Baltimore. 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  341 

well  furnished,  for  you.  Now,  if  brother  William,  in  the  dull 
season  of  summer,  would  take  to  himself  a  little  recreation,  for 
the  benefit  of  his  health,  and  bring  you  on  to  "  Bosting,'1  it 
would  afford  me  the  greatest  pleasure.  Now,  I  am  not  joking. 
I  may  be  in  Baltimore  myself  this  summer;  that  is,  if  the^sA 
bite,  of  which  I  think  there  is  but  little  doubt.  You  can  then 
return  with  me ;  I  will  see  you  safe  home.  I  have  much  more 
I  would  like  to  write,  but  have  not  the  time.  I  send  you  the 
Temperance  Standard.  Please  have  the  Baltimore  Sun  sent 
to  me  regularly.  No  more,  my  dear  sister,  at  present, 

From  your  brother,  JOHN. 

The  following  letter  from  Mr.  Hawkins  to  his  sister, 
giving  a  quite  minute  statement  of  his  domestic  ar- 
rangements, will  be  found,  it  is  believed,  highly  inter- 
esting and  amusing. 

BOSTON,  April  1st,  1846. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER, —  I  have  just  returned  home  from  a  short 
tour  of  duty  through  Bristol  and  Norfolk  counties,  in  this  State, 
and  have  had  great  success  in  obtaining  signatures  to  the 
pledge.  The  cause  of  temperance,  morals,  humanity,  and  re- 
ligion is  still  progressing. 

I  still  continue  to  enjoy  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  of  God, 
uninterrupted  health,  for  which  I  am  thankful,  although  very 
unworthy  of  so  many  favors.  God  has  done  great  things  for 
me,  and  I  have  cause  to  be  glad.  We  have  as  a  family  every 
thing  to  make  us  happy,  and  if  we  are  not  so  it  is  our  own 
fault. 

I  have  thought  it  might  be  some  little  gratification  to  you  to 
give  you  some  description  of  our  location  in  the  city,  and  our 
"  fixins "  about  the  house,  that  is,  furniture,  etc.,  etc.  I  am 
prompted  to  do  this  by  tin.'  fact  that  I  have  never  IK-CM  so 
comfortably  situated  before  in  all  my  life.  I  do  it  also  because 
you  arc  not  here  to  go  through  the  house,  and  say  "how  nicely 
you  arc  fixed!"  In  the,  first  place  we  are  located  in  a  iv.-peci- 
29* 


342  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

able  arid  quiet  part  of  the  city,  and  oh  !  those  bells,  how  charm- 
ingly do  they  chime  out  on  the  holy  Sabbath  of  our  common 
Father  and  God  !  Our  parlor  is  large  and  airy  ;  as  large  as 
either  of  yours  ;  the  floor  is  covered  with  a  beautiful  new  three- 
ply  carpet,  a  fine  rug,  a  new  settee,  a  mahogany  card-table,  but 
no  cards,  and  one  dozen  very  handsome  chairs,  and  other  things 
to  match  ;  a  rather  fine  looking-glass,  pictures,  and  some  other 
"  fixins." 

My  bedroom  is  well  furnished.  Hannah's  and  the  children's 
bedroom  also  has  every  comfort.  Our  kitchen  is  a  good  one  ; 
our  breakfast-room  exhibits  some  little  style.  "We  have  one  of 
the  best  of  servants  (white)  I  ever  saw;  she  came  with  us  from 
Roxbury.  In  the  cellar  we  have  an  abundance  of  rain-water, 
and  in  the  yard  a  pump  of  as  good  water  as  I  ever  drank  in 
my  life.  I  have  also  a  room,  a  nice  little  bedroom,  that  is  also 
furnished,  and  how  glad  I  should  be  if  I  could  only  have  the 
pleasure  of  lighting  you  up  to  it  this  summer. 

My  dear  and  venerable  mother,  remember  me  to 

her  in  much  kindness.     I  hope  she  is  happy.     Dear  J will, 

I  know,  do  all  in  his  power  to  make  her  so,  and  so  will  his 
good  wife.  I  hope  he  will  take  the  advice  I  gave  him  in  my 
last  letter.  Do  you  remember  it  ?  It  seems  rather  strange  to 
advise  a  husband  to  be  obedient  to  his  wife ;  but  without 
joking,  if  husbands  would  look  more  to  their  wives  for  advice, 
it  would  be  better  for  them.  I  speak  from  experience,  and  he 
is  a  good  schoolmaster.  I  must  close. 

Your  affectionate  brother, 

JOHN. 

After  remaining  at  home  a  few  days  Mr.  Hawkins 
proceeded  to  comply  with  invitations  to  lecture  in  the 
following  places :  Foxboro',  North,  South,  East,  and 
West  Bridgewater,  South  Abington,  North  Dighton, 
South  Reading,  Thomaston,  in  Maine,  where  he  lec- 
tured three  days  with  great  acceptance,  and  many 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  343 

pledges  were  taken,  Camden,  West  Thomaston,  War- 
ren, Wiscasset,  Bath,  Brunswick,  and  Portland.  On 
the  1st  of  May  he  returned  to  Boston,  and  having  no 
appointment  on  Sunday  he  lectured  to  the  inmates  of 
the  State  Prison.  On  the  4th  we  find  him  at  Fitch- 
burg  ;  subsequently  in  Fitzwilliam,  Keene,  Walpole, 
Bellows  Falls,  Rockingham,  Saxton  River,  Chester, 
Cavendish,  Ludlow,  and  Rutland,  on  his  way  to 
Canada.  We  find  at  this  date  the  following  en- 
tries :  — 

Left  Plattsburg  May  25th,  1846,  for  Montreal.  Lectured 
in  that  city  until  the  5th  of  June,  then  took  passage  in  a  steamer 
for  Quebec,  lecturing  there  with  great  success  until  the  llth 
day  of  June.  On  that  day  departed  for  home,  stopping  on  the 
way  at  Melbourne,  Sherbrook,  and  Compton,  Canada ;  Bur- 
lington and  many  other  places  in  Vermont.  Reached  home  on 
the  7th  of  July. 

This  tour,  involving  many  miles  of  travel  and  great 
labor,  was  noticed  in  the  papers  of  the  day,  both  in 
Canada  and  Vermont,  as  resulting  in  great  and  lasting 
benefit  to  the  cause. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

"  On,  brothers,  on  !  though  the  night  be  gone, 

And  the  morning  glory  breaking : 
Though  your  toils  be  blest,  ye  may  not  rest, 

For  danger's  ever  waking. 
Ye  have  spread  your  sail,  ye  have  braved  the  gale, 

And  a  calm  o'e>-  the  sea  is  creeping ; 
But  I  know  by  the  sky  that  danger's  nigh  — 

There's  yet  no  time  for  sleeping." 

No  event,  perhaps,  in  the  social  life  of  Mr.  Hawkins 
afforded  him  so  great  pleasure  as  the  visit  of  his  vener- 
able and  pious  mother  to  his  home  in  Boston.  This 
visit  had  been  long  in  contemplation.  For  over  forty 
years  he  had  been  the  subject  of  her  daily  prayers.  She 
was  a  true  mother.  Even  in  his  wildest  wanderings  she 
had  been  always  ready  to  open  her  arms  to  the  return- 
ing prodigal.  Indeed,  there  was  much  in  her  that  any 
son  might  love.  There  was  a  sweetness  in  the  expres- 
sion of  her  countenance,  a  gentleness  in  her  words,  and 
a  grace  in  her  manners,  that  endeared  her  to  all  who 
knew  her.  To  introduce  this  mother  to  his  numerous 
iriends  in  Boston  who  loved  and  honored  him  was  in- 
deed a  great  pleasure.  Having  made  every  arrange- 
ment for  this  visit,  he  left  for  Baltimore  July  14,  1846, 
and  returned  to  Boston  on  the  30th,  bringing  her  with 
him ;  he  remained  at  home  until  the  21st  of  August 

His  visit  to  Baltimore,  the  condition  in  which  he 
found  things  in  that  city,  and  his  present  happiness  in 
the  society  of  his  aged  parent,  are  thus  alluded  to  by  a 
sympathizing  friend  in  one  of  the  Boston  papers :  - 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  345 

We  have  had  a  call  from  our  friend  John  Hawkins,  who 
has  just  returned  from  Baltimore,  where  he  says  the  cause  of 
temperance  is  in  a  truly  deplorable  state ;  grog-shops  are  mul- 
tiplying, and  an  entirely  new  set  of  customers  frequent  them  ; 
young  men  from  eighteen  to  twenty  years  of  age,  who  at  the 
commencement  of  the  Washingtonian  reform  in  that  city  were 
mere  boys.  Mr.  Hawkins  brought  with  him  his  venerable 
mother,  who  is  now  at  his  house.  She  is  in  her  seventieth 
year,  and  is,  in  appearance,  all  that  she  has  been  represented 
by  Mr.  Hawkins  in  his  addresses.  What  a  source  of  happiness 
must  it  be  to  mother  and  son  to  meet  under  such  pleasant  cir- 
cumstances ;  —  she  about  to  leave  the  world  in  peace  with  God 
and  man,  and  he,  over  whom  she  had  shed  so  many  tears,  re- 
deemed from  intemperance,  and  beloved  by  the  wise  and  good 
all  over  the  land,  soothing  her  declining  years,  and  making  her 
passage  to  the  grave  a  most  pleasant  journey.  God  bless  them 
both !  May  they  live  many  years  to  enjoy  each  other's  society, 
and  when  the  summons  shall  come  calling  her  or  him  to  go 
home  and  be  here  no  more,  may  they  part  to  meet  in  heaven. 

Mr.  Hawkins  did  not  remain  idle  during  the  whole 
period  of  his  mother's  visit,  but,  between  the  21st  of 
August  and  the  20th  of  September,  lectured  in  twenty- 
six  towns  in  Connecticut.  He  returned  to  Boston  on 
the  21st,  and  continued  his  labors  in  and  about  the  city, 
lecturing  once  to  a  large  audience  in  Faneuil  Hall,  until 
Oct.  2d;  on  that  day  he  wrote  thus  to  his  sister:  — 

BOSTON,  Oct.  2d,  1846. 

MY  DEAR  SISTER  FRANCES, — I  cannot  say  that  I  am  happy 
to  inform  you  that  mother  will  leave  Boston  on  Wednesday  after- 
noon next,  October  7th,  at  five  o'clock  for  home,  for  the  reason 
that  her  visit  has  been  one  of  uninterrupted  pleasure  to  us.  I 
only  wish  it  was  so  that  she  could  "always  live  with  me  ; "  but  I 
cannot  expect  this.  During  her  sojourn  with  us  her  health  has 


346  LIFE    OP   JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

been  good,  and  I  have  done  all  that  I  could  to  make  her  stay 
happy  ;  it  has  been  emphatically  so.  "We  visited  the  great 
cattle  show  and  fair  yesterday  at  Lynn ;  she  was  delighted. 
From  thence  we  went  by  railroad  to  Salem,  took  a  drive 
through  that  beautiful  city,  visited  the  East  India  Museum,  and 
returned  home  in  the  afternoon.  In  the  evening  attended  a 
great  temperance  meeting  at  Faneuil  Hall.  To-morrow,  Sat- 
urday, we  are  to  visit  the  Blind  Asylum  at  South  Boston ;  this, 
too,  will  be  a  gratifying  sight  to  her.  Now  in  regard  to  her 
departure,  we  —  for  I  shall  accompany  her  as  far  as  Philadel- 
phia—  shall  leave  here  on  Wednesday  afternoon,  as  I  have 
stated.  I  think  it  is  likely  we  shall  remain  part  of  a  day  in 
Philadelphia,  so  that  she  may  see  Fairmount  Water-works,  and 
other  interesting  objects  in  the  city.  I  need  scarcely  say  that 
somebody  should  meet  her  at  the  depot  in  Pratt  Street,  for  I 
suppose  there  will  be  a  host  of  you  there  to  welcome  her  home 
after  her  long  absence. 

Your  brother,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Changing  his  mind,  he  continued  his  journey  to 
Baltimore  with  his  mother,  and  returned  to  Boston  on 
the  18th  of  October.  On  the  next  day  he  wrote  to  his 
son,  remarking :  — 

I  leave  this  day  for  a  tour  "  down  East,"  into  the  State  of 
Maine ;  the  following  is  the  list  of  my  appointments  :  Ports- 
mouth, N.  H.,  South  Berwick,  Kennebunk,  Kennebunk  Port, 
two  days ;  Saco,  Portland,  Brunswick,  Bath,  Wiscasset,  Noblc- 
boro',  Waldoboro',  Warren,  Union,  Prospect,  Searsport,  Belfast, 
two  days  ;  Bath,  Bowdoinham,  Gardiner,  Hallowell,  Augusta, 
Vassalboro',  Waterville,  Skowhegan,  Norridgewock,  Farming- 
ton,  Livermore,  Turner,  Paris,  Norway,  Waterfbrd,  North 
Bridgeton,  Bridgeton,  Lovell,  Fryeburgh,  Brownfield,  Den- 
mark, Hiram,  East  Baldwin,  Standish,  Buxton  Centre,  Lim- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  347 

erick,  Waterboro  Centre,  Alfred,  two  days,  and  Springvale.   Mr. 
Hunt  left  here  this  morning  for  the  State  of  New  Hampshire. 

He  returned  to  Boston  on  the  10th  of  December, 
where  he  remained  until  the  20th  of  January,  1847. 
His  observation  of  the  state  of  things  in  the  city  had 
convinced  him  that  a  more  stringent  enforcement  of 
existing  laws  was  absolutely  necessary  for  the  protec- 
tion of  the  unoffending  people,  or,  if  that  should  prove 
ineffectual,  that  the  municipal  laws  should  be  so 
changed  as  to  clothe  the  proper  authorities  with  fuller 
powers  to  suppress  the  iniquitous  traffic.  So  aggrieved 
was  he  at  the  increase  of  intemperance,  that  he  ad  • 
dressed  the  following  communication  to  the  editor  of 
the  Mercantile  Journal.  It  was  introduced  by  the  fol- 
lowing editorial  remarks :  — 

We  commend  to  the  serious  attention  of  our  readers  the  facts 
and  suggestions  set  forth  in  the  following  communication  from 
Mr.  Hawkins,  the  powerful  and  well-known  advocate  of  tem- 
perance. The  increase  of  intemperance  and  kindred  vices  in 
our  good  city  is  indeed  alarming,  and  should  rouse  to  action  the 
disinterested  philanthropist,  and  the  true  friends  to  the  interests 
of  the  city.  The  suggestions  of  Mr.  Hawkins  appear  sound 
and  feasible,  and  we  hope  will  be  carried  into  operation  without 

delay. 

BOSTON,  January  4,  1847. 

Mr.  SLEEPER:  Dear  Sir,  —  The  year  1846  has  closed,  and 
1847  has  come  in  upon  us  like  a  spring  day ;  it  has  not  brought 
joy  to  all ;  we  cannot  say  a  happy  new  year  to  all. 

During  my  stay  in  the  city,  I  am  in  the  habit  of  visiting 
the  poor,  the  needy,  and  the  distressed,  with  which  our  goodly 
city  abounds,  more'  than  in  forme,  years.  Not  a  day  passes, 
when  I  am  at  home,  that  I  am  not  in  the  Police  Court. 

On  the  first  day  of  the  new  year  an  unusual  number  of  cases 


348  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

of  drunkenness  were  brought  up  before  the  Police  Court.  A 
man  who  keeps  a  notorious  grog-shop  opposite  the  National 
Theatre,  was  complained  of  by  the  City  Marshal  for  selling 
three  glasses  of  gin  to  two  boys ;  one  thirteen,  the  other  four- 
teen years  of  age ;  both  made  drunk  and  taken  to  the  tvatch- 
house.  On  the  next  day,  they  were  brought  before  the  Police 
Court,  when  they  testified  to  the  fact  of  purchasing  and  drink- 
ing the  gin,  for  which  the  seller  was  justly  fined  sixty  dollars 
and  costs,  and  bound  over  to  keep  the  peace.  The  two  boys,  for 
want  of  security  to  appear  at  the  Municipal  Court  against  him, 
were  committed  to  Leverett-Street  jail. 

Now,  sir,  if  the  new  year  has  thus  commenced,  where  shall 
we  find  ourselves  at  its  close?  From  the  year  1830  to  the 
close  of  1839,  a  period  of  ten  years,  there  were  twenty-one 
thousand  three  hundred  and  fifty  complaints  made  before  the 
Police  Court.  The  last  six  years  the  number  is  twenty  thou- 
sand seven  hundred  and  fifty-one,  making  the  enormous  sum  of 
forty-two  thousand  one  hundred  and  one.  The  last  year  the 
number  of  complaints  were  four  thousand  and  ninety-three; 
an  increase  of  six  hundred  and  eighty-three  over  the  previous 
year.  Is  not  this  increase  fearfully  alarming  ?  Why  is  it  that 
there  seems  to  be  so  great  an  increase  of  drunkenness  ?  Is  it 
not  that  grog-shops  have  been  permitted  to  multiply  to  a  fright- 
ful degree  ?  The  fact  of  their  increase  is  so  glaring  that  no 
one  will  for  a  moment  question  it.  Is  it  not  in  the  power  of 
our  worthy  mayor  and  aldermen,  at  least  in  some  degree,  to 
lessen  their  number  by  taking  such  steps  as  their  judgment 
and  the  present  condition  of  society  demand  ?  If  it  is  not  in 
their  power  to  stop  them,  why  in  the  name  of  humanity  should 
not  the  coming  Legislature  so  alter  the  present  law,  that  the 
city  authorities  may  be  clothed  with  power  so  to  act  that  the 
wicked  rum-seller  may  feel  that  he  shall  not  be  permitted  to 
grow  rich  upon  the  poor,  and  ride  rough-shod  over  the  laws  of 
the  Commonwealth. 

The  city,  county,  and  State,  are  put  to  an  enormous  expense 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  349 

by  the  existence  of  grog-shops,  and  humanity,  bleeding  at  every 
pore,  demands  that  something  more  effectual  should  be  done. 
Uoston,  it  will  be  acknowledged,  is  a  great  field  of  labor,  and 
there  are  many  laborers  at  work  ;  and  there  is  still  room  for 
more.  I  have,  for  several  years,  thought  that  a  plan  might  be 
adopted  which  would  lessen  the  sufferings  of  humanity,  reform 
the  intemperate,  and  save  thousands  of  dollars  to  the  city.  My 
want  of  education  convinces  me  that  I  am  not  competent  to 
write  out  the  proper  and  necessary  suggestions.  I  will,  how- 
ever, venture  to  suggest  a  partial  plan  of  operation ;  viz.,  ap- 
point some  suitable  person  who  would  be  willing  to  devote  his 
whole  time  in  finding  out  and  visiting  the  unfortunate  drunk- 
ard, and  endeavor  so  to  reform  him  that  he  may  be  kept  out  of 
the  Police  Court  and  the  House  of  Correction,  and  restored  to 
his  family,  his  country,  and  his  God,  and  make  him  a  useful 
citizen,  by  watching  over  him  for  good ;  also  to  visit  and  re- 
lieve the  wants  of  the  poor  and  destitute  in  which  our  city 
abounds.  I  know  that  the  various  charitable  institutions  have 
committees  appointed  in  each  ward  to  relieve  the  poor,  and 
that  the  city  has  in  each  ward  an  overseer  of  the  poor ;  but 
those  men  are  generally  men  of  business,  and  cannot  devote 
their  whole  time  to  it ;  such  an  operation  cannot  but  be  pro- 
ductive of  great  good.  Such  an  enterprise  cannot  be  carried 
on  without  money.  And  how  is  this  money  to  be  raised  ?  I 
answer,  by  private  subscription.  Several  .wealthy  gentlemen 
who  have  conversed  with  me  on  the  subject,  approve  the  plan, 
and  have  expressed  their  willingness  to  aid  the  enterprise..  In 
conclusion,  I  would  most  respectfully  invite  public  attention  to 
this  matter,  believing  it  to  be  of  great  importance  to  the  welfare 
of  the  city.  Yours  respectfully, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  the  20th  of  January  he  was  present  and  spoke  at 
the  Vermont  State  Temperance  Convention,  held  at 
Springfield.     On  the  first  of  February  he  was  again 
so 


350  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

invited  to  the  State  of  Maine,  and  lectured  in  twenty- 
six  towns  where  he  had  not  before  been,  and  returned 
to  Boston  on  the  28th.  On  the  3d  of  March  the 
Washington  State  Temperance  Convention  of  Massa- 
chusetts assembled ;  a  large  number  of  delegates  were 
present  from  all  parts  of  Massachusetts,  and  from 
other  New  England  States.  Capt.  W.  R.  Stacy  was 
elected  President ;  resolutions  were  offered  and  passed, 
expressive  of  devout  thankfulness  to  God  for  the  on- 
ward progress  of  the  Washingtonian  movement  in  res- 
cuing thousands  of  degraded  men  from  the  evil  of  in- 
temperance. A  large  number  of  effective  speeches 
were  made  upon  the  occasion,  the  speakers  being  lim- 
ited to  ten  minutes  each. 

"  I  fear  not,"  briefly  remarked  Mr.  Hawkins,  "  for  the 
temperance  cause.  The  signers  of  -the  pledge  have 
stood  firm  to  their  principles,  amid  a  thousand  tempta- 
tions without,  and  the  gnawing  cravings  of  appetite  with- 
in ;  and  they  will  stand,  despite  the  baneful  influences 
around  them.  I  feel  and  believe  there  are  men  around 
me  now,  who  have  been  saved  from  the  iron  thraldom 
of  intemperance,  whom  I  shall  yet  see  standing  at  the 
right  hand  of  the  throne  of  God.  When  I  look  at  the 
nature  of  man,  and  consider  the  passions,  like  the  flint 
and  steel,  ready  to  burst  into  flame  at  the  slighest  col- 
lision, I  wonder  that  so  many  have  been  saved.  I  have 
now  lived  seven  years  a  sober  life,  and  enjoyed  for  seven 
years  a  sober  sleep.  There  is  nothing  now  to  make  me 
tremble.  There  is  one  sweet  thought  at  morning  and 
night,  in  summer  and  in  winter,  in  sickness  and  in  health, 
that  my  heart  involuntarily  and  continually  utters,  and 
it  is  this,  "  Thank  God  I  am  a  sober  man"  Let  us  go 
on,  brethren,  nor  cease  our  labors,  until  the  last  drunk- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS.  351 

ard  is  saved.  Never  give  up  a  man  while  there  is  life; 
but  struggle  on,  and  lift  him  up  again  and  yet  again, 
nor  relinquish  your  hold  upon  him,  until  he  is  dead, 
dead,  dead!"  His  remarks  are  spoken  of  as  being 
highly  encouraging  to  his  co-laborers  in  the  good 

cause. 

,  On  the  6th  of  March,  1847,  a  very  important  decision 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  was  made, 
recognizing  the  right  of  the  several  States  to  regulate 
and  control  the  trade  in  intoxicating  drinks  within  their 
respective  limits.  How  this  decision  affected  Mr. 
Hawkins  may  be  learned  from  his  remarks  in  a  letter  to 
his  son,  dated  Boston,  March  23d.  After  referring  to 
a  very  successful  tour  in  Rhode  Island,  where  he  had 
visited  eight  places  in  as  many  days,  and  of  his  inten- 
tion to  return  and  lecture  there  until  the  first  of  May, 
he  proceeds  :  "  I  have  nothing  more  of  interest  to  write, 
except  that  the  late  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  has 
thrown  the  rum-sellers,  all  over  the  land,  into  a  great 
state  of  confusion.  The  sentence  has  been  pronounced; 

«  Othello's  occupation's  gone  ! ' 

On  the  next  day  he  went  to  Providence,  R.  I.,  which 
he  made  his  head-quarters,  and  by  the  7th  of  May  he 
had  canvassed  the  largest  part  of  the  State,  lecturing 
in  twenty-six  towns. 

On  the  10th  and  llth  of  April  we  find  him  again  in 
Boston.  The  alarming  increase  of  the  traffic,  and  the 
distressing  instances  of  inebriation  which  met  his  eye, 
called  forth  the  following  very  pungent  article  in  the 
Boston  Daily  Chronotype.  The  circumstance  referred 
to  recalled  to  Mr.  Hawkins'  mind,  without  doubt,  a 
similar  practice  which  existed  at  the  time  of  his  own 
apprenticeship,  and  which  was  the  cause  of  so  much 


352  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

woe  to  himself,  and  his  fellow-apprentices  and  work- 
men. 

(FOR  THE  CHROMOTYPE.) 

MASTER-MECHANICS  AND   LIQUORS. 

I  was  glad  to  see  that  you  noticed  an  editorial  paragraph 
that  appeared  in  the  Bee  of  the  Gth  inst.,  in  which  that  paper 
said :  "  We  are  informed  that  several  large  master-mechanics 
have  put  hogsheads  of  liquor  up  in  their  shops,  and  where  be  fare 
they  gave  SI. 50  per  day,  now  pay  $1.44,  with  the  privilege  of 
pulling  twice  at  the  bung  during  the  day" 

Now,  sir,  I  ask  can  it  be  possible  that  in  the  city  of  Boston 
there  is  a  "  master-mechanic"  so  insensible  to  his  interests,  the 
interests  of  his  journeymen  and  apprentices,  as  to  put  upon  hip 
"hogsheads  of  liquor"  for  his  men  and  boys?  And  1  ask 
further;  can  it  be  possible  that  in  this  age  of  light  there  can  be 
found  journeymen  mechanics  who  would  tamely  submit  to  so 
gross  an  outrage  as  having  their  wages  do«ked  as  above  stated 
for  the  privilege  of  "  pulling  twice  at  the  bung  during  the  day  ?  " 
No,  sir;  I  don't  believe  there  is  one  word  of  truth  in  the  state- 
ment. If  untrue,  it  is  a  base  outrage  and  libel  upon  that  most 
respectable  class  of  our  citizens  ;  if  true,  the  Bee  should  name 
them,  that  the  parents  of  the  apprentices,  at  least,  may  know 
the  temptation  that  is  set  before  them.  Master- mechanics 
and  journeymen,  is  the  above  statement  of  the  Bee  true  or 
false  ?  What  say  you  ?  are  you  slaves  or  freemen  ? 

It  appears  to  me  that  since  the  unparalleled  outrages  com- 
mitted in  Faneuil  Hall,  several  of  the  daily  papers,  from 
articles  appearing  in  them,  are  playing  second  fiddle  to  the 
rum-sellers,  who  have  so  grossly  outraged  the  laws  of  this 
Commonwealth.  Why  is  this  ?  Have  they  lost  their  indepen- 
dence ?  or  have  they  never  had  any,  farther  than  their  own 
interests  are  concerned  ?  But  I  must  take  care  how  I  write,  or 
I  may  bring  down  on  my  devoted  head  the  power  of  the  press 
with  all  the  good  moral  character  of  the  rum-sellers  of  Boston. 
Gracious  Heavens  !  The  good  moral  character  of  a  rum-seller 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  353 

of  1847  !  What  an  idea!  Why,  sir,  you  might  as  well  talk 
about  a  pious  devil,  a  virtuous  prostitute,  or  an  honest  thief,  as  to 
talk  of  a  rum-seller  in  tins  age  of  light  having  a  "  good  moral 
diameter."  In  business  matters  I  have  not  a  doubt  of  the 
honesty  of  a  large  majority  of  them.  But  their  business ! 
what  wretched  misery  has  it  caused  in  our  land,  and  yet  they 
are  not  satisfied.  The  cry  is,  give  !  give !  Yes,  they  have 
applied  to  the  honorable  mayor  and  aldermen  of  the  city  of 
Boston  for  a  license  to  continue  their  work  of  death  and 
destruction  ;  and  Wednesday  next,  the  14th  day  of  April,  at 
three  o'clock,  is  set  apart  to  hear  from  them,  in  person  or 
through  their  representatives,  their  arguments  in  favor  of 
granting  them  a  license  to  kill.  Will  our  honorable  mayor  and 
aldermen  grant  them  a  license  ?  I  pray  God  that  they  may 
not  do  so.  They  will  not,  unless  they  wish  to  undo  all  that 
temperance  has  clone  for  the  city,  over  which  they  have  been 
called  by  a  virtuous  people  to  preside.  I  should  like  to  be 
present  to  hear  their  arguments  why  license  should  be  granted 
to  them,  but  my  engagements  call  me  elsewhere. 

I  will  close  by  entering  my  most  solemn  protest  against 
granting  any  man  a  license  to  sell  intoxicating  liquors  as  a 
/><• /•(>,-( i r/<>.  I  care  not  how  good  a  "  moral  character  "  he  may 
bear.  I  solemnly  protest  against  the  sale  of  an  agent,  for  the 
purpose  of  gain,  which  by  the  accordant  and  unanimous  con- 
M'nt  of  all  intelligent  physiologists  and  physicians,  carries 
injury  and  mischief  to  every  organ,  tissue,  and  fibre  of  the 
human  body,  engendering  feuds  and  quarrels,  dismembering 
families,  and  creating,  wherever  it  comes,  domestic  wretched- 
ness  and  anguish  in  their  most  dreadful  forms  ; —  an  agent  which 
is  the  acknowledged  enemy  of  every  industrial  pursuit  of  man- 
kind ;  the  deadly  destroyer  of  industry  and  thrift,  upon  the 
farm,  in  the  shop,  on  the  ship,  behind  the  counter,  in  the 
of  lice,  and  wherever  there  are  hands  to  work  or  work  to  be 
done;  tlic  lor,  of  agriculture,  of  manufactures,  of  art,  and  of 
learning;  —  an  agent  which  destroys  every  moral  sensibility, 
30* 


354  LIFE   OP  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

paralyzes  the  conscience,  and  dethrones  religion ;  the  effects  of 
which  may  be  seen  in  the  brutal  wallowings  of  debased  men, 
in  the  shameful  spreeings  of  drunkenness,  in  the  turbulence  of 
mobs,  in  the  abominations  of  the  brothel ;  —  an  agent  whose  fell 
effects  are  to  be  read  in  the  records  of  the  hospital,  in  the 
annals  of  the  poorhouse,  house  of  correction,  and  jails,  in  the 
penitentiaries,  and  the  gallows.  And  now,  what  shall  be 
thought  of  men  who,  in  view  of  these  disastrous  consequences 
of  their  business,  will  ask  for  a  license  to  sell  intoxicating 
drinks?  It  cannot  be  possible  that  our  worthy  mayor  and 
aldermen  will  grant  the  request  of  the  petitioners.  If  they  do, 
farewell  to  the  morals  of  Boston.  I  close  by  subscribing 
myself  the  uncompromising  foe  to  the  sale  and  use  of  intoxi- 
cating liquor  as  a  beverage. 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

From  the  l?th  of  May  until  the  10th  of  June  Mr. 
Hawkins  confined  his  labors  to  the  State  of  Vermont. 
On  the  15th  he  was  at  Philadelphia,  attending  the  cel- 
ebration of  the  National  Division  of  the  Sons  of  Tem- 
perance, an  order  to  which  he  belonged,  and  to  the 
advancement  of  which  he  gave  his  hearty  efforts.  This 
benevolent  society  had  increased  in  the  year  then  past, 
sixty  thousand;  making  at  the  date  of  the  meeting  a 
membership  of  over  a  hundred  thousand.  He  remained 
in  Philadelphia  until  the  19th,  frequently  taking  a  part 
in  their  deliberations.  Returning  to  Boston,  he  again 
started  for  the  State  of  Maine,  and  returned  on  the 
20th  of  July ;  he  speaks  of  the  journey  as  "  a  long  and 
laborious  tour  '  Down  East.' " 

During  the  month  of  August  he  canvassed  a  large 
part  of  Massachusetts  and  a  portion  of  Connecticut ; 
up  to  the  6th  of  September  he  had  lectured  in  twenty- 
nine  towns ;  during  this  time  he  spent  but  five  days 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  355 

with  his  family.     On  the  6th  of  the  above  month  he 
reached  Hartford,  Ct,  and  thus  writes  to  his  son  :  — 

I  have  been  well  received  everywhere.  I  held  a  very  large 
meeting  last  evening  (Sunday)  in  the  City  Hall;  they  have 
prevailed  on  me  to  remain  here  to-night  (Monday)  and  give 
another  address,  consequently  we  (your  mother  is  with  me) 
shall  not  be  in  Middletown  by  boat  to-day,  as  I  wrote  you. 
We  now  purpose  leaving  in  the  nine  o'clock  stage  on  Tuesday 
morning.  I  am  to  be  at  Haddam  the  same  evening. 

During  the  remaining  weeks  of  September  he  deliv- 
ered nineteen  lectures  in  the  same  number  of  towns  in 
Connecticut.  He  next  commenced  a  series  of  lectures 
in  all  the  important  towns  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey. 
The  impression  produced  in  this  State  was  scarce!} 
less  than  that  which  had  attended  his  first  efforts. 
Everywhere  he  aroused  the  timid,  and  inspired  the 
wavering  to  renewed  attacks  upon  the  foe  to  human 
happiness  against  which  he  was  battling. 

Completing  these  engagements,  he  returned  to  New 
York  on  the  20th  of  October.  He  left  that  city  for  his 
home  on  the  27th,  and  lectured  on  the  way  in  eight 
towns. 

The  rapidity  of  his  movements  and  the  amount  of 
his  labors  was  at  this  period  in  his  history  truly  aston- 
ishing ;  and  the  enthusiasm  which  he  brought  into  the 
work  excited  the  admiration  of  the  friends  of  temper- 
ance everywhere.  After  reaching  Norwich,  Ct.,  he  vis- 
ited several  places  in  the  vicinity,  and  attended  the 
Connecticut  State  Temperance  Convention,  held  No- 
vember 10th,  taking  an  active  part  in  its  deliberations. 
After  a  rest  of  six  days  at  home,  we  find  him  visiting 


356  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

and  lecturing  in  New  London  and  several  of  the  adja- 
cent towns.  On  the  25th  of  November  his  journal 
speaks  of  his  efforts  at  Plainfield,  N.  J.,  and  other 
places  in  that  neighborhood.  Next  we  find  him  in- 
structing and  entertaining  large  audiences  at  Wilming- 
ton, Del. ;  December  1st  to  6th  in  his  native  city,  Bal- 
timore, where  he  speaks  upon  frequent  occasions.  After 
lecturing  on  the  7th  and  8th  of  December  in  Frederick 
City,  Md.,  he  visits  his  mother  for  one  day  at  Cherry 
Grove.  On  the  13th  we  find  him  again  at  Wilmington, 
Del.,  from  which  place  he  went  to  Philadelphia ;  thence 
to  Connecticut  again,  where  he  lectured  in  fifteen  towns, 
until  the  6th  day  of  January,  1848,  when,  exhausted  by 
excessive  labor,  he  returned  to  Boston  to  rest  for  a  few 
weeks  and  enjoy  the  society  of  his  family.  While 
there  he  addressed  a  letter  to  his  sister,  from  which  we 
make  the  folio  wing,  extract :  — 

*  *  *  I  have  just  returned  home  from  my  tour  through 
the  land  of  "  steady  hahits."  I  have  held  many  interesting 
meetings  since  I  left  Baltimore.  I  have  spoken  in  public 
twenty-eight  times  in  twenty-two  days.  That  much  labor 
would  break  down  some  of  our  strongest  ministers,  but,  strange 
as  it  may  seem,  it  scarcely  affects  me;  only  for  a  little  while 
after  I  have  done  speaking.  What  a  great  blessing  it  is  to 
have  such  uninterrupted  good  health  6T  body  and  full  flow  of 
spirits ;  not  spirits  of  rum,  but  of  a  sound  mind.  How  much, 
my  dear  sister,  am  I  indebted  to  my  heavenly  Father  that  my 
drinking1  habits  did  not  break  down  my  constitution.  * 

He  remained  at  home  until  the  21st  of  January,  and 
then,  by  invitation,  lectured  in  Milton,  South  Boston, 
Neponset,  Cambridgeport,  Raynham,  Milton  Mills,  etc., 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  357 

and  on  the  30th  attended  a  meeting  at  Tremont  Tem- 
ple. We  next  find  him  at  Chelsea,  West  Medway,  two 
days,  Wayland,  Fall  River,  and  New  York.  On  the 
4th  of  February  he  addressed  a  brief  note  to  his  son, 
saying,  — 

I  have  in  contemplation  to  visit  the  West  by  way  of  Buffalo ; 
this  I  intimated  to  you  when  I  saw  you.  If  so,  it  is  probable 
we  shall  not  have  the  pleasure  of  being  present  in  Middletown 
to  attend  the  Commencement  when  you  graduate.  I  shall  at 
all  events  see  you  before  we  go  "West. 

The  visit  of  Father  Mathew  to  this  country  was  an 
event  to  which  Mr.  Hawkins  looked  forward  with  much 
pleasure  ;  he  longed  to  take  by  the  hand  and  welcome 
the  good  man  to  this  country.  Letters  had  been  re- 
ceived by  several  persons,  and  also  by  Mr.  Hawkins, 
explaining  why  he  was  unable  to  leave  Ireland  sooner. 
Mr.  Hawkins  alludes  to  this  expectation  in  a  letter  to 
his  son,  dated  Boston,  April  11,  1848.  In  the  mean 
time,  from  February  4th,  he  had  visited  and  spoken  to 
interested  audiences  in  forty  towns  in  Massachusetts, 
Connecticut,  and  Rhode  Island.  In  the  letter  alluded 
to  he  says  :  — 

I  had  intended  not  to  leave  for  the  West  until  Father  Ma- 
llow's arrival  in  this  country,  which  was,  you  know,  expected 
in  May.  A  letter  from  him  to-day  informs  me  that  he  will  not 
be  in  this  country  until  the  month  of  August  or  September.  I 
have  therefore  made  up  my  mind  to  proceed  to  Western  New 
York  and  through  Upper  Canada,  commencing  some  time  in 
May. 

He  continued  to  lecture  in  and  about  Boston,  and  on 
the  19th  of  April  thus  writes :  — 


358  LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

I  have  just  this  moment  returned  from  Cape  Ann,  Glouces- 
ter and  Rockport,  and  go  off  again  this  afternoon  for  Marble- 
head,  Gloucester,  West  Parish,  Saugus,  Manchester,  and  Dan- 
vers.  I  shall  leave  Boston,  positively,  the  providence  of  God 
permitting,  on  the  2d  day  of  May,  for  my  journey  to  the  West 
and  Upper  Canada,  sweeping  round  through  the  lakes  to  St. 
Louis,  etc. 

After  complying  with  numerous  invitations  to  lec- 
ture in  various  parts  of  New  England,  he  went  to  New 
York,  and  after  delivering  a  number  of  lectures  there 
and  in  adjacent  cities,  he  departed  on  his  journey. 
We  have  not  room  for  all  the  details  which  he  re- 
corded in  his  journal.  In  a  letter  to  his  son,  dated 
Oswego,  June  1,  1848,  he  says :  — 

I  have  thus  far  been  received  with  marked  attention,  partic 
ularly  in  this  place ;  several  interesting  meetings  have  been 
held.  This  afternoon,  at  three  o'clock,  I  address  the  Cadets  of 
Temperance  and  the  Daughters  of  Temperance,  and  at  night, 
in  one  of  the  churches,  I  speak  to  the  public.  To-morrow  I 
leave  by  steamer  for  Ogdensburg,  thence  I  cross  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  Prescott,  on  my  way  through  Canada  West,  etc. 

After  visiting  eighteen  of  the  principal  cities  in  Mid- 
dle and  Northern  New  York,  he  passed  on  to  the  fol- 
lowing towns  in  Canada :  Brookville,  Kingston,  Mon- 
treal, Cananoque,  Brockville,  Belleville,  Pictou,  and 
Toronto,  in  each  of  which  places  he  spent  from  one 
to  four  days.  This,  however,  was  but  a  small  part 
of  what  he  proposed  to  accomplish  when  he  started 
on  his  journey.  He  returned  to  Boston  on  the  7th  of 
July.  The  following  extract  from  a  letter  to  his  son, 
under  date  of  July  10,  1848,  will  account  for  his  unex- 
pected return :  — > 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS.  359 

It  will  no  doubt  surprise  you  to  know  that  I  have  arrived  at 
home.  Two  reasons  have  caused  this;  first,  the  want  of  sup- 
port in  Canada ;  they  scarcely  paid  my  expenses.  The  farther 
I  travelled  into  Canada,  the  worse  I  found  it ;  yet  I  hope  not 
a  little  good  has  been  accomplished  ;  the  meetings  were  gen- 
erally well  attended.  The  other  reason  —  for  not  going  into 
Michigan  and  Wisconsin  —  is,  that  the  political  excitement  is 
raging  in  that  section  to  such  a  degree  that  nothing  can  be 
done  on  the  subject  of  temperance. 

This  was  the  canvass  which  resulted  in  the  election 
of  General  Taylor.  From  the  date  of  the  above  lettei 
to  the  26th  of  August,  he  was  employed  almost  daily 
in  various  parts  of  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  and 
Connecticut ;  most  of  this  time  was  spent  in  Bristol 
County. 

A  part  of  August  and  September  he  spent  in  the 
State  of  Maine.  On  the  18th,  19th,  20th,  and  21st  he 
was  in  Washington  City,  having  been  invited  there  to 
lecture  for  a  few  days.  On  the  7th  of  October  he 
again  returned  to  the  State  of  Maine,  and  after  lectur- 
ing in  twenty-seven  towns,  passed  into  the  Province  of 
New  Brunswick,  speaking  to  interested  audiences  in 
many  of  its  towns.  His  engagement  closed  in  St. 
John,  where  he  spent  three  days.  He  returned  to  Bos- 
ton on  the  16th  of  November,  and  the  remainder  of 
the  year  was  devoted  to  lecturing  in  Barnstable  county 
All  hough  he  had  previously  visited  almost  every  town 
on  Cape  Cod,  he  was  now  invited  to  canvass  the  whole 
i-..  unity  a  second  time;  his  lectures  were  everywhere 
\vell  received. 

The  cause  was  now  making  rapid  advances  in  nil 
parts  of  tin;  State.     The  Parent  Total  Abstinence  So- 


3GO  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

ciety  of  Boston,  alone,  since  its  formation  in  April, 
1841,  soon  after  Mr.  Hawkins  came  there  to  lecture, 
had  received,  up  to  January  1848,  fifty-six  thousand 
three  hundred  and  eighty  signatures. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

"ISut  there's  a  fire,  along  whose  track, 

Spring  never  scatters  flowers  in  bloom, 
But  all  is  desolate  and  black 
As  midnight  in  a  hopeless  tomb. 

"  Aljke  upon  the  low  and  high 

Falls  this  '  strange  fire  ; '  it  feeds  and  preys 
On  Beauty's  cheek,  in  Wisdom's  eye, 
And  melts  down  manhood  in  its  bla/.e. 

"  (Quench,  mighty  God  !  by  thine  own  power, 
By  love  and  truth,  with  spring  and  well, 
With  stream  and  cistern,  flood  and  shower, 
In  mercy  quench  this  fire  of  hell !  " 

ALLUSION  has  already  been  made  to  the  fact  that  the 
subject  of  this  memoir  was  in  the  habit  of  collecting, 
wherever  he  went,  statistics  connected  with  the  subject 
of  intemperance.  These  embraced  reports  of  benevo- 
lent institutions,  the  condition  of  jails,  poorhouses,  etc. 
The  facts  thus  collected  he  was  enabled  to  use  with 
great  effect  when  the  subject  of  prohibitory  legislation 
began  to  be  agitated.  Day  after  day,  month  after 
month,  and  year  after  year,  by  personal  conversation, 
by  public  addresses,  and  sometimes  by  articles  in  the 
newspapers,  he  labored  to  convince  the  public  of  the 
wicked  system  under  which  they  were  living,  a  system 
which  permitted,  under  the  sanction  of  law,  the  exist- 
ence of  tradi-s  which  were  in  direct  violation  of  tin- 
laws  of  sobriety,  and  against  the  interests  of  human- 
si  (.-tun 


362  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

ity.  In  reply  to  the  argument  that  the  business  of 
manufacturing  and  vending  intoxicating  drinks  was 
sanctioned  by  law,  he  contended  that  the  power  to 
make  laws  was  derived  from  the  people,  and  that  the 
wisest  course  to  pursue  was  to  educate  the  people  up 
to  the  point  where  they  would  demand,  through  their 
representatives,  the  repeal  of  existing  statutes  and  the 
enactment  of  laws  which  would  prohibit  the  continu- 
ance of  the  nefarious  business. 

Mr.  Hawkins  regarded  with  evident  pleasure  the 
growing  sentiment  of  the  New  England  States  against 
.the  traffic.  Some  of  the  States  repealed  all  license 
laws ;  others  began  to  agitate  the  question  of  making 
it  a  highly  penal  offence  to  be  found  engaged  in  the 
business.  The  period  was  rapidly  approaching  when 
a  "  Prohibitory  Law  "  was  to  be  the  watchword  of  all 
the  advocates  of  temperance.  For  the  coming  of  thai 
day  he  longed  and  labored.  Being  well  acquainted 
with  the  condition  of  the  question  in  all  the  States  of 
the  Union,  his  lectures  wherever  he  went  were  highly 
appreciated,  not  only  for  the  information  they  commu- 
nicated, but  for  the  interest  in  the  cause  which  they 
awakened  in  the  hearts  of  his  hearers.  To  this  doctrine 
of  prohibition  thousands  of  converts  were  now  being 
made.  Mr.  Hawkins  was  acknowledged  to  have  been 
no  feeble  instrument  in  the  attainment  of  this  object. 

Returning  to  Mr.  Hawkins'  correspondence  we  find, 
in  a  letter  dated  at  Norwich,  Ct.,  Jan.  17,  1849,  the 
following  brief  account  of  his  visit  to  the  "  North- 
east : "  - 

After  returning  to  Boston  for  a  few  days,  I  started  for  the 
Province  of  New  Brunswick,  taking  in  my  course  the  whole 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  363 

coast  of  Maine,  visiting  almost  every  town  from  Boston  to 
Calais  and  many  towns  in  the  Province,  including  the  city  of 
St.  John.  You  remember  I  was  in  New  Brunswick  about  five 
years  since  ;  they  were  then  far  behind-hand  in  the  temperance 
reformation.  I  did  not  suppose  that  my  feeble  labors  while 
there  were  of  any  good  to  the  people ;  but  how  mistaken  we 
sometimes  are ;  we  do  good  and  don't  know  it.  My  recent 
visit  gave  me  incontestible  evidence  of  the  fact.  Many  came 
to  me  and  told  me  that  they  were  reformed  under  my  lecturing, 
and  they  now  have  a  large  number  of  the  Divisions  of  the  Sons 
of  Temperance,  the  best  conducted  and  attended  of  any  that  I 
have  visited.  They  were  very  glad  to  see  me,  and  treated  me 
with  every  mark  of  attention.  On  my  return,  I  visited  every 
town  in  Barnstable  County.  I  then  returned  home  for  a  few 
days ;  then  started  again,  visiting  the  following  towns  in  New 
Hampshire ;  viz.,  Nashua,  Manchester,  Concord,  Gilmanton, 
Meredith  Bridge,  and1  so  on  to  Franklin ;  returned  to  Lowell, 
and  lectured  there  one  week  every  night.  At  home  one  day, 
thence  to  Clintonville,  thence  to  this  place,  where  I  am  engaged 
for  one  week,  and  three  weeks  in  the  vicinity.  I  design  to  be 
at  Cincinnati  in  May,  at  the  grand  National  Jubilee  of  the  Sons 
of  Temperance.  *  * 

Between  the  date  of  the  last  letter  and  the  first  of 
May,  Mr.  Hawkins  visited  and  addressed  the  citizens 
of  fifty-five  towns  in  various  parts  of  New  England. 
Invitations  poured  in  upon  him  from  every  quarter. 
One  writer  says,  "  We  want  you  here  for  the  reason 
Hint  \ve  need  to  have  temperance  truths  poured  upon 
us  boiling-  hot,  until  we  shall  be  made  to  feel  their  im- 
portance." Mr.  Hawkins  sometimes  did  so,  and  the 
result  was  that  many  individuals,  not  much  interested 
in  the  progress  of  temperance,  complained  bitterly  of. 
his  severity.  He  was  an  ardent  opponent  of  the  aiders 


304  LIFE    OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

and  abettors  of  the  evil,  and,  therefore,  it  is  not  strange 
that  he  made  some  enemies. 

On  the  2d  of  May  he  left  for  Cincinnati  to  attend 
the  jubilee  referred  to,  stopping  at  Pittsburg,  at  which 
place  there  was  a  large  assembling  of  the  Sons  of 
Temperance.  Lecturing  a  few  days  in  Newport,  Ky., 
and  Madison,  Ind.,  he  proceeded  to  Indianapolis,  where 
he  left  Mrs.  Hawkins,  whose  feeble  health  did  not  per- 
mit her  to  accompany  him  to  the  various  towns  where 
he  was  engaged  to  lecture.  He  visited  almost  every 
town  of  any  importance  in  the  State,  devoting  to-  this 
work  the  whole  month  of  June.  The  month  of  July 
he  spent  in  Michigan,  and  in  the  northern  part  of  Ohio. 
On  the  4th  of  August  he  reached  Kalamazoo.  We 
make  the  following  extracts  from  a  letter  written  at  this 
place. 

Your  very  kind  and  prompt  reply  to  my  letter  written  at 
Ann  Ai-bor,  was  duly  received  upon  my  arrival  this  morning 
in  this  very  beautiful  village,  the  most  beautiful  I  have  ever 
seen.  From  Ann  Arbor  we  proceeded  to  Dexter,  where  we 

tarried  two  days,  stopping  at  the  mansion  of  Judge  D , 

formerly   of  Massachusetts.     Thence   to    Jackson,    where  we 

sojourned   in   the  family   of  a  Mr.   S ,   secretary   of  the 

insurance  company  located  in  that  place.  We  remained  three 
days,  and  were  treated  in  a  most  handsome  manner.  I  lectured 
three  times  to  houses  crowded  to  their  utmost  capacity.  The 

State  Prison  is  located  at  this  place.    Mrs.  S ,  accompanied 

by  my  wife  and  myself,  visited  the  prison.  I  spoke  to  the  in- 
mates and  such  a  time  of  weeping  I  have  seldom  witnessed  any- 
where. They  are  mostly  young  men  ;  some  of  them  buried  for 
life  within  these  walls.  One  young  man  is  sentenced  for  life 
to  solitary  confinement  in  a  cell,  for  murder.  From  Jackson 
we  proceeded  to  Albion ;  thence  to  Marshall,  another  large 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  365 

and  beautiful  village.  I  spoke  to  a  crowded  congregation  in 
the  Presbyterian  Church  at  2  P.M.  ;  in  the  evening  in  the  M. 
E.  Church ;  the  people  could  not  all  be  seated.  We  next  vis- 
ited the  villages  of  Cold  Water,  Centreville,  Constantine,  and 
Cassopolis.*  We  shall  leave  this  place  on  Monday  morning  for  . 
Battle  Creek,  and  on  Monday,  August  8th,  go  to  Niles.  I 
have  changed  some  of  my  appointments  from  those  sent  you  ; 
by  present  appointments  we  proceed  first  to  Mishawaka,  thence 
to  *  *  *  all  of  which  are  in  Indiana.  We  shall  then 
cross  Lake  Michigan  to  Chicago,  arriving  at  the  latter  place 
Monday,  August  20th.  From  thence  to  South  port,  Racine, 
and  Milwaukie ;  thence  to  Mackinac ;  thence  to  Sault  De  Ste. 
Marie ;  at  this  place  there  is  good  fishing ;  they  catch  pike, 
trout,  and  whitefish  that  weigh  from  twenty  to  forty  pounds. 
You  see  I  must  say  something  about  fishing. 

Mr.  Hawkins  did  not,  after  all,  have  the  pleasure  of 
angling  in  the  Lakes.  News  reached  him  of  the  arri- 
val in  this  country  of  Father  Mathew,  and  after  visit- 
ing a  large  number  of  places  in  Illinois,  Wisconsin,  and 
Michigan,  he  began  his  journey  homeward,  lecturing 
on  his  way  in  Cleveland,  Erie,  Penn.,  and  Buffalo, 
which  place  he  left  on  the  27th  of  September  for  Bos- 
ton. Mr.  Hawkins  says  in  his  journal,  "  Met  Father 
Mathew  for  the  first  time  in  Taunton,  Massachusetts." 

The  circumstances  attending  this  their  first  public  in- 
terview, were  noticed  in  the  papers  of  the  day ;  one 
account  thus  refers  to  the  event :  — 

JOHN  HAWKINS  AND  FATHER  MATHEW.  — The  enter- 
prising friends  of  temperance  at  Taunton,  had  a  magnificent 
demonstration  on  Saturday,  October  6th,  1849.  They  met  en 
masse  to  welcome  the  arrival  of  the  far-famed  philanthropist, 
Father  Mathew.  Addresses  were  made  by  Father  Mathew, 
Rev.  Mr.  Brigham,  John  Hawkins,  and  G.  W.  Bungay.  At 
31* 


366  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

the  close  of  a  short  and  spirited  speech  by  Mr.  Hawkins,  he  ex- 
tended his  hand  to  Father  Mathew,  who  immediately  arose  and 
grasped  it  in  a  most  hearty  and  affectionate  manner.  It  was  a 
gratifying  spectacle  to  see  those  veteran  heralds  of  temperance 
shaking  hands  and  smiling  benedictions  on  each  other,  as  though 
both  hearts  were  beating  in  each  bosom.  They  are  both  ro- 
bust-looking men,  just  past  the  prime  of  life,  somewhat  resem- 
bling each  other  in  form,  if  not  in  feature.  When  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins renewed  the  pledge  he  has  never  violated,  the  good  friar 
who  administered  it  stooped  down  and  kissed  him  in  a  most 
paternal  and  patriarchal  manner. 

Before  leaving  the  North,  Mr.  Hawkins  addressed 
a  letter  to  Father  Mathew,  congratulating  him  upon 
his  safe  arrival  in  this  country,  and  expressive  of  an 
earnest  desire  that  his  days  of  usefulness  might  be 
many ;  accompanying  the  note  'was  a  volume  of  "  The 
Reformed  Drunkard."  On  reaching  St.  Louis,  several 
months  after,  Mr.  Hawkins  received  the  following  letter 
in  reply :  — 

IRVING  HOUSE,  NEW  YORK,  November  9,  1849. 

MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  Your  esteemed  letter  has  just  been 
handed  to  me  by  my  secretary,  Mr.  O'Meara.  It  affords  me 
much  pleasure  to  hear  that  you  are  well,  and  successfully  en- 
gaged in  the  good  cause.  I  am  staying  here  for  a  few  days  to 
recruit  my  health,  prior  to  my  departure  for  the  South.  Next 
week,  God  willing,  I  purpose  proceeding  to  Philadelphia.  At 
present  I  have  not  decided  on  the  period  of  my  further  appoint- 
ments, but  after  I  can  arrange  them,  shall  be  happy  to  inform 
you.  I  take  this  opportunity  to  thank  you  for  your  interesting 
and  valuable  present  of  "  The  Reformed  Drunkard."  Wishing 
you  all  success,  and  shall  always  be  happy  to  hear  from  you, 
I  am,  dear  Mr.  Hawkins, 

Yours  most  sincerely, 

THEOBALD  MATIIIOW. 
MR.  J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS,  Springfield,  111. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  3G7 

Mr.  Hawkins  finding  that  the  journey  to  the  West 
was  beneficial  to  his  wife's  health,  decided  to  return 
and  continue  his  labors  in  that  section  of  the  country. 
A  letter  to  his  son,  of  Dec.  17th,  1849,  contains  a  full 
account  of  his  progress  as  far  as  Springfield,  111. ;  we 
find  room  for  a  few  extracts :  — 

*  *  *  On  reaching  Schenectady  we  took  passage  on 
board  a  packet  on  the  "  raging  kanawl,"  for  Buffalo  ;  we  were 
three  days  and  four  nights  performing  the  distance,  three  hun- 
dred and  forty-eight  miles ;  by  railroad  it  would  have  taken  us 
only  fourteen  hours.  On  the  6th  left  Cleveland  for  Detroit. 
Having  delivered  a  number  of  lectures  in  that  neighborhood, 
I  made  arrangements  for  my  visit  to  Illinois. 

After  describing  a  number  of  places  through  which 
he  passed,  he  continues  :  — 

This  [Nov.  30th]  morning  at  day  break,  we  started  for  La 
Salle  and  Peru.  One  of  the  most  lovely  mornings  I  ever  be- 
held ;  clear  and  mild,  and  we  are  in  such  good  spirits ;  the 
spirits,  too,  were  of  the  right  kind.  Just  after  breakfast  we 
saw  four  beautiful  full-grown  deer,  within  twenty  yards  of  us. 
It  was  indeed  a  fine  sight,  as,  with  their  heads  raised  to  their 
full  height,  they  cantered  away  across  the  prairie.  At  noon 
we  reached  La  Salle  and  Peru,  the  two  villages  joining 
each  other,  situated  on  the  Illinois  river,  at  the  end  of  the 
canal,  and  commencement  of  steamboat*  navigation.  These 
two  villages  have  a  vast  and  fertile  prairie  on  all  sides  of  them, 
and  are  destined  to  be  great  places  of  business. 

Spent  two  days  here  and  lectured  two  evenings  to  well-filled 
houses.  Monday,  Dec.  3,  reached  Peoria,  where  I  held  three 
meetings;  the  most  enthusiastic,  I  believe,  I, have  ever  held. 

He   next  visited   Pekin  and   Naples,  where  he   met 


368  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W-.    HAWKINS. 

large  audiences.    After  speaking  particularly  of  Spring- 
field and  Jacksonville,  he  concludes :  — 

"We  shall  probably  leave  Jacksonville  on  Friday,  for  St. 
Louis,  by  stage  route,  stopping  at  the  villages  of  Whitehall, 
Carrolton,  Jerseyville,  and  Alton  ;  thence  by  the  river  Missis- 
sippi to  St.  Louis. 

Among  the  papers  left  by  Mr.  Hawkins  we  find  the 
following  testimonials  of  the  estimation  in  which  his 
services  were  held  in  the  West  at  the  time  of  this  visit. 

JACKSONVILLE,  Dec.  14,  1849. 

DEAR  BROTHER,  —  We  have  been  directed  by  a  resolution 
of  Excelsior  Division,  No.  25,  S.  T.,  to  request  you,  if  not 
inconsistent  with  your  other  arrangements,  to  re-visit  this 
place  and  to  deliver  another  address  to  the  citizens  of  Jack- 
sonville on  the  subject  of  temperance.  The  members  of  our 
Division,  in  common  with  all  the  good  and  true  men  of  our 
vicinity  who  had  the  pleasure  of  hearing  your  recent  lectures, 
are  of  opinion  that  great  good  must  always  result  from  efforts 
aimed  as  yours  are,  and  that  sure  success  will  follow  where  the 
weapons  of  the  combat  are  as  bright  as  those  which  you  have 
exhibited  to  us. 

We  are  instructed  to  say  to  you  that  your  charges  while  here 
will  be  borne  by  this  Division,  and  that  they  will  provide  for 
your  transportation  to  the  next  village  on  your  route  of  travel. 

Be  pleased  to  advise  us  as  soon  as  possible  of  your  dispo- 
sition with  regard  to  our  invitation,  so  that  our  arrangements 
may  be  seasonably  made. 

Yours  in  love,  purity,  and  fidelity, 
JAS.  BERDAN,  ] 

RICHARD  YATES, 

T    i*r    B-_.  >  Committee. 


J.  W.  KING, 

NA  POLK  ON    KOSCIALOWSKI, 
S.  —  Should  yon    accept    our    invitation,  you   are    niu.-i 


LIFE   OF   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  369 

cordially  invited  to  make  my  house  the  home  of  yourself  and 
family  during  your  stay.  J.  W.  KING. 

HALL  OF  SOKS  OF  TEMPERANCE,  JEESEYVILLE,  111.,  ) 
December  25th,  1849.  ) 

BROTHER  JOHN  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Brother,  —  It  affords  me 
great  pleasure  to  forward  to  you  the  following  resolution,  passed 
unanimously  by  our  Division. 

Resolved,  That  the  warmest  thanks  of  the  Division  be  tendered  to 
Brother  John  Hawkins,  for  his  acceptable  labors  in  this  place  in  the  cause 
of  temperance. 

A.  M.  BLACKSTONE, 

Acting  Recording  Secretary,  pro.  tern. 

On  reaching  St.  Louis  Mr.  Hawkins  received  pressing 
invitations  to  lecture  in  various  parts  of  Missouri,  a 
few  of  which  he  was  able  to  accept.  He  proceeds  with 
a  narrative  of  his  journey  in  a  letter  written  at  Louis- 
ville, February  4th,  1850,  from  which  we  make  the  fol- 
lowing extracts :  — 

You  will  be  somewhat  surprised  to  hear  of  our  making  so 
sudden  and  long  a  jump  from  Nashville  to  this  place  ;  the 
reason  is  this.  Upon  my  arrival  at  Nashville  I  learned  that 
Philip  S.  White,  of  Philadelphia,  was  engaged  to  lecture  in 
the  State,  and  I  thought  it  would  not  be  right  for  me  to  be  in 
his  way.  *  *  * 

I  resume  my  narrative  at  Jacksonville.  I  spoke  a  second 
time  there  to  an  overflowing  house.  The  Sons  met  in  a  body 
af  their  hall,  preceded  by  a  fine  l>;ui<l  of  music.  We  marched 
to  (lie  Congregational  Church;  the  meeting  was  opened  by 
prayer  by  the  Grand  Chaplain  ;  the  band  then  played  a  fine  air  ; 
alter  which  eight  of  (he  pupils  from  the  Blind  Asylum,  which 
is  located  here,  played  most  delightfully  upon  various  instru- 
ments of  music  ;  it  was  indeed  a  beanliful  scene.  The  exer- 
cises were  concluded  by  vocal  music,  of  the  raOSl  affecting  kind} 


370  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

from  those  blind  pupils.  *  *  *  On  Monday  morning  the 
friends  provided  us  a  private  conveyance,  at  their  own  expense, 
to  Jerseyville.  Here  we  had  a  most  delightful  time.  It  was 
Christmas-eve,  and  there  being  previous  knowledge  of  our 
coming,  extensive  arrangements  had  been  made.  The  Sons 
took  the  business  in  hand,  and  it  was  done  in  handsome  style. 
We,  with  a  number  of  friends,  partook  of  our  Christmas 
dinner  with  the  Rev.  George  C.  Wook.  In  the  evening  I 
lectured  to  a  crowded  house.  After  lecture  we  attended  a 
delightful  entertainment  at  the  house  of  a  friend  from  our 
native  State ;  our  social  converse  was  kept  up  till  long  after 
midnight ;  this  you  will  think  was  a  little  intemperate.  We 
had,  however,  none  of  the  "  crittur "  to  spoil  our  enjoyment, 
for  there  is  not  a  place  in  this  town  where  a  glass  of  liquor 
can  be  bought. 

Wednesday  morning,  20th,  the  Hon.  Mr.  Goodrich  took  us 
in  his  carriage  to  Alton.  Monday,  December  31st,  we  took 
steamboat  for  St.  Louis,  and  on  our  arrival  found  that  our 
temperance  friends  had  provided  excellent  accommodation  for 
us  at  the  best  hotel  in  the  city.  *  *  * 

On  our  arrival  at  Nashville  we  were  met  at  the  boat  by  some 
of  the  leading  friends  of  temperance,  who  insisted,  notwith- 
standing Mr.  White's  engagement,  —  he  had  not  yet  arrived 
from  New  Orleans,  —  that  we  must  stay  at  least  one  week ;  we 
were  provided  with  rooms  at  a  good  hotel.  I  held  some  very 
interesting  meetings  in  the  city,  and  at  the  close  of  a  well-spent 
week  we  took  passage  in  the  steamer  E.  W.  Edwards  for  this 
place,  and  arrived  here  on  Friday  morning,  February  1st. 

In  the  month  of  April  Mr.  Hawkins  visited  Wash- 
ington, Georgetown,  and  Alexandria,  spending  one  day 
with  his  son  at  the  Theological  Seminary  near  the  lat- 
ter place.  He  arrived  at  Boston,  on  his  return,  April 
22d.  From  the  12th  of  May  to  the  4th  of  July  he 
was  employed  almost  daily  in  lecturing  at  various 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  371 

places  in  New  England.  On  the  5th  of  July  he  again 
left  Boston  on  a  visit  to  the  West.  We  make  the  fol- 
lowing brief  extract  from  a  letter  to  his  son,  dated  at 
Quincy,  111.,  Nov.  27,  1850  :  — 

*  *  *  I  have  crowded  and  attentive  audiences  in  almost 
every  place  visited.  The  cause  has  made  great  progress  in 
this  country.  I  have  lectured  two  evenings  in  this  place;  the 
largest  room  could  not  hold  the  people.  At  the  close  of  my 
second  lecture,  I  was  requested  by  acclamation  to  return  from 
Palmyra,  a  distance  of  twelve  miles,  to  deliver  three  more  ad- 
dresses ;  a  great  many  have  signed  the  pledge ;  some  of  these 
"  hard  cases."  After  filling  my  engagement  here,  I  shall  return 
to  Baltimore  by  way  of  St.  Louis,  Cincinnati,  etc.  I  think 
seriously  of  making  Baltimore  city  my  residence  in  future ;  it 
will  be  quite  as  central  for  my  work  as  Boston.  *  *  * 

Mr.  Hawkins  accordingly  removed  his  family  to  Bal- 
timore on  the  llth  day  of  January,  1851.  The  months 
of  March  and  April  following  he  spent  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, lecturing  in  a  large  number  of  towns  in  the 
Eastern  and  middle  portions  of  that  State.  In  the 
months  of  May,  June,  and  July,  he  visited  and  lectured 
with  great  acceptance  in  every  town  of  importance  in 
Virginia.  Of  the  numerous  letters  which  were  re- 
ceived from  him  during  his  sojourn  in  that  State,  we 
can  find  room  for  the  following  only :  — 

RICHMOND,  Va.,  May  27,  1851. 

My  DKAR  SON,  —  The  heading  of  this  letter  may  surprise 
YOU.  It  is  true  that  I  am  in  the  "  Old  Dominion."  I  have  been 
lecturing  in  Richmond  for  a  week,  and  you  may  ask  with 
much  propriety,  why  I  did  not  stop  to  see  you  at  Alexandria  ; 
Or  why  I  have  nol  \\rillcn.  Constant  occupation  is  my  only 
excuse.  However,  I  .-hall  do  better  ill  future..  I  shall  !• 


372  LIFE    OF    JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS. 

here  to-day  for  Petersburg,  where  I  shall  probably  spend 
the  remainder  of  the  week.  From  the  5th  to  the  llth  I  spent 
with  General  John  H.  Cocke,  of  Fluvanna  County,  lecturing 
daily  in  that  neighborhood.  I  find  considerable  interest  in  the 
cause  in  this  State,  and  attentive  audiences.  Let  me  know  the 
precise  time  when  you  take  orders,  as  I  wish,,  if  possible,  to  be 
at  the  seminary  at  the  time. 

I  am,  in  great  haste,  your  father,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

On  the  20th  of  August,  soon  after  his  return  from 
his  arduous  labors  in  Virginia,  he  left  for  Portland, 
Me.  He  had  been  invited  to  canvass  that  State  for 
the  purpose  of  encouraging  the  people  in  their  enforce- 
ment of  the  "  prohibitory  liquor  law,"  which  had  then 
become  a  statute-law  of  the  State.  The  simple  prin- 
ciple of  that  statute  was,  to  prohibit  entirely  the  sale 
of  intoxicating  liquors  as  a  beverage.  It  was  subse- 
quently materially  amended  in  1852,  and  rendered  still 
more  stringent  in  its  provisions  by  the  law  of  1855. 
How  this  new  species  of  legislation  was  regarded  by 
Mr.  Hawkins  may  be  learned  from  the  following  com- 
munications ;  one  of  them  from  his  friend  and  earnest 
and  able  co-laborer  in  the  cause,  Dr.  Charles  Jewett, 
whose  name  alone  is  a  tower  of  strength.  The  first  is 
from  Mr.  Hawkins  to  his  son.  It  will  be  noticed  that 
it  was  written  soon  after  the  meeting  of  the  State 
Temperance  Convention,  which  was  held  at  Portland, 
on  the  26th  of  August,  and  continued  its  session  three 
days.  Mr.  Hawkins  was  present  and  participated  in 
its  deliberations. 

SEBAGO,  Me.,  Sept.  11,  1851. 

MY  DKAR  Sox,  —  Since  I  left  Baltimore  I  have  confined 
my  labors  to  Maine;  I  hope,  too,  with  some  success.  This 


LIFE    OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  373 

State  now  stands  frst  in  the  cause  of  temperance.     This  you 
may  infer  from   its  liquor   law,  ;t   copy  of  which   I   enclose  in 
this  letter ;  the  provisions  of  which,  if  enforced  in  their  very 
spirit  and  letter,  especially  in  regard  to  the  seizure  and  destruc- 
tion of  all  liquors  coming  into  the  State,  must  put  an  end  to 
the  traffic.     Thousands  of  gallons  have  already  been  destroyed 
by  pouring  it  out  upon  the  ground.     There  are  now  under  lock 
and  key,  in  various  places  in  this  State,  several  hundred  casks, 
that  have  been  seized  and  will  be  destroyed  according  to  law, 
at  the  proper  time,  as  you  will  see  by  its  provisions.     The  pas- 
sage of  this  very  stringent  law  has  surprised  not  only  the 
people  of  the  United  States,  but  the  whole   civilized  globe 
wherever  the  temperance  question  has  been  agitated.     And 
what  is  the  most  astonishing  part  of  the  matter  is,  that  the  law 
so  far  has  been  rigidly  enforced,  without  serious  opposition  on 
the  part  of  the  rum-sellers  or  their  friends.      Every   cargo, 
either   by   steamboat,   railroad,  or   otherwise,    that   has  been 
landed  or  is  landing  at  any  port  of  entry  along  the  coast  of 
Maine,  is  closely  watched  and  inspected  by  the  citizens  ;  par- 
ticularly so  by  an  order  called  the  "  Watchman's  Club."    There 
are  now  over  one  hundred  of  these  clubs   in  the   State,  com- 
posed of  thousands  of  it?  very  best  citizens,  who  have  solemnly 
pledged  themselves  to   enforce  the  law,  and  they  will  do  it. 
Last  week  a  young  man   only  thirty  years   of  age,  a  trader  at 
Waterford,  declared  that  he  would  sell  liquor  in  spite  of  all 
law,  and  threatened  death  to  any  officer  or  citizen  who  should 
dare  to  seize  any  of  his.     Under  the  cover  of  night  he  started 
on  his  way  to  Waterford,  with  his  team,  on  which  he  had  placed 
two  barrels  of  rum,  that  had  been  clandestinely  secreted  in  a 
warehouse  in  Sebago.     The  next  morning  he  was  found  cold 
and  dead  in  the  road ;  his  wagon  had  upset,  and  the  heads  of 
both  barrels  burst  out  by  the   upsetting.      Truly  the  way  of 
the  transgressor  —  ruin-seller  —  is  hard. 

1  am  engaged  to  lecture  in  this  State  until  the  8th  of  Octo- 
ber.    I  shall  then  return  to  Boston,  and  on  the   10th  shall  go 


32 


374  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

to  Taunton  in  Massachusetts,  where  I  am  engaged  to  lecture 
in  Bristol  County  until  the  1st  of  November.     *     *     * 
Your  father,  affectionately, 

J.  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

In  his  journal  Mr.  Hawkins  mentions  the  names  of 
forty-four  towns  which  he  visited,  and  among  them 
Hallowell,  where  the  incident  mentioned  in  the  follow- 
ing communication  from  Dr.  Jewett  occurred. 

BOSTON,  January  1,  1859. 

REV.  WILLIAM  G.  HAWKINS  :  Dear  Sir,  —  Of  the  many 
thousands  of  our  countrymen  whose  earthly  life  ceased  during 
the  year  '58,  it  is  doubtful  whether  a  single  individual  left  be- 
hind more  sincere  mourners  than  your  father.  During  the 
eighteen  years  which  have  passed  since  his  reformation,  no 
man  in  the  country  stood  upon  his  feet  more  hours  in  the  ad- 
vocacy of  the  temperance  cause,  and  no  one  urged  its  claims 
with  more  earnestness  or  sincerity,  or  gave  to  the  world  in 
connection  with  his  public  labors  stronger  evidence  of  entire 
devotion  to  the  work  he  had  taken  in  hand.  His  wonderful 
success  in  inspiring  the  victims  of  intemperance  with  hope  and 
a  belief  in  the  possibility  of  their  reform,  and  in  leading  them  to 
pronounce  the  important  words  "  I  will,"  can  be  attested  by 
hundreds  of  living  and  grateful  men. 

It  was  my  good  fortune  to  become  acquainted  with  him  when 
he  first  visited  Boston,  and  up  to  the  year  '52  I  had  frequent 
intercourse  with  him,  both  on  the  temperance  platform  and  in 
the  social  and  domestic  circle.  I  have  never  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  any  other  man  whose  mind  seemed  so  entirely  absorbed 
by  the  single  question  of  the  temperance  reformation.  Every 
successful  movement  in  that  direction,  by  whomsoever  made, 
was  to  him  a  personal  triumph,  and  every  blow  aimed  at  the 
cause,  he  resented  and  attempted  to  parry  as  a  blow  aimed  at 
himself.  While  I  remember  any  event  which  occurred  between 
the  vears  1843  and  1853  I  shall  remember  the  pleasure  he 


LIFE  OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS.  375 

manifested  while  reciting  to  me  the  history  of  a  transaction 
which  took  place  at  Hallowell,  in  Maine,  with  which  we  had 
both,  at  different  periods,  been  connected  as  actors.  I  will 
briefly  give  you  the  history  of  the  affair.  A  few  weeks  after 
the  passage  of  the  Maine  Law  in  that  State,  I  visited  the  region 
of  the  Kennebec,  by  invitation  of  my  friend  Neal  Dow,  a  gen- 
tleman with  whom  the  world  has  since  become  .pretty  well  ac- 
quainted. I  counselled  the  immediate  and  thorough  enforce- 
ment of  the  law  as  the  best  means  of  securing  its  popularity 
and  perpetuity.  A  warrant  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  an  offi- 
cer to  search  the  premises  of  an  individual  who  had  declared, 
as  Madam  Rumor  informed  us,  his  determination  to  resist  to 
the  death  any  legal  process  to  deprive  him  of  the  stock  of  liquors 
in  his  possession.  I,  with  another  friend,  volunteered  to  assist 
the  officer  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty,  and  in  the  face  of  an 
excited  rabble  of  "  hard  cases,"  we  seized  the  contents  of  the 
establishment,  which  consisted  of  fourteen  barrels  of  liquor,  and 
despite  the  terrors  of  a  broad-axe,  in  the  hands  of  the  excited 
keeper  of  the  establishment,  the  liquors  were  taken  away  and 
safely  deposited  to  await  the  decision  of  the  legal  authorities. 
They  were  subsequently  condemned,  and  Mr.  Hawkins,  as  he 
informed  me,  happened  to  reach  the  place  just  as  execution 
was  about  to  be  done  upon  them.  He  accompanied  the  crowd 
to  the  place  of  execution,  and  with  delight  saw  the  blood  of  his 
old  enemy  flow  into  the  gutter.  As  soon  as  the  first  cask  was 
emptied  he  placed  it  on  end,  and  mounting  upon  it,  he  addressed 
the  crowd  on  the  subject  of  temperance,  while  the  other  thirteen 
casks  were  being  emptied.  It  was  the  first  time  he  had  wit- 
nessed the  execution  of  the  Maine  Law,  and  it  was  to  him  a 
season  of  great  exultation.  He  had  often  seen  liquor  go  into 
the  stomachs  of  men  and  take  them  with  it  into  the  gutter,  and 
had  been  made  sad  by  the  spectacle  ;  and  now,  to  see  the 
liquors  reach  their  proper  destination  in  the  ditch,  alone,  it  was 
a  scene  to  awaken  in  his  breast  a  joy  beyond  the  power  of 
words  to  express.  The  full  import  of  the  great  revolution 


376 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 


Destruction  of  liquors  at  Ilallowcll.  Maine. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  377 

which  had  taken  place  in  the  opinions  of  the  people  and  in  the 
laws  of  the  State,  seemed  then  to  flash  upon  his  mind,  and  he 
pleaded  for  prohibition  thereafter,  no  more  earnestly  perhaps 
than  before,  but  with  a  stronger  faith  in  the  ultimate  triumph 
of  the  cause.  He  has  gone  to  his  rest  with  a  pledge  unbroken 
and  a  character  unstained  by  any  act  unworthy  of  the  position 
he  assumed  in  society  immediately  after  his  reformation.  He 
has,  however,  left  behind  him  an  influence  and  a  history  which 
will  fight  for  and  with  us,  so  long,  at  least,  as  any  of  us  shall 
live  who  rejoiced  in  his  reformation  and  were  witnesses  of  his 

faithful  labors. 

CHARLES  JEWETT. 
32* 


CHAPTER     XXIII. 

"  There  is  a  tide  in  the  affairs  of  men, 
Which,  taken  at  the  flood,  leads  on  to  fortune; 
Omitted,  all  the  voyage  of  their  life 
Is  bound  in  shallows  and  in  miseries  ; 
And  we  must  take  the  current  when  it  serves, 
Or  lose  our  ventures." 

THE  months  of  February  and  March,  1852,  were 
characterized  by  a  series  of  mighty  gatherings  of  the 
friends  of  temperance  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Faith 
in  the  expediency  and  practicability  of  prohibitory  leg- 
islation was  extending  itself  everywhere  over  the 
country.  The  Hon.  Neal  Dow,  and  his  coadjutors  in 
Maine,  had  dealt  the  most  powerful  blow  that  had  yet 
been  inflicted  upon  the  infamous  traffic.  Those  who 
had  witnessed  the  operation  of  the  law  in  that  State, 
were  convinced  that  it  was  wise  and  just.  The  other 
New  England  States  soon  asked  for  it.  New  York, 
groaning  under  her  miseries,  demanded  it. 

The  people  were  becoming  aroused,  and  they  ap- 
peared to  be  determined  to  stop  at  nothing  short  of 
the  fullest  protection,  which  they  believed  prohibition 
alone  could  secure.  An  alliance  had  been  formed  of 
the  friends  of  temperance  from  all  parts  of  the  State, 
for  the  purpose  of  agitating  the  question  of  prohibitory 
legislation.  The  convening  of  a  new  legislature  in  the 
city  of  Albany  was  the  signal  to  the  temperance  host 
for  action.  The  most  powerful  influence  against  which 
they  had  to  contend,  was  the  city  of  New  York,  and  it 

(378) 


LIFE    OF    JOHN    11.    W.    HAWKINS.  379 

was  there  that  they  determined  to  concentrate  their  ef- 
forts. 

A  series  of  stirring  meetings  was  accordingly  held 
in  Metropolitan  Hall.  The  meeting  on  Tuesday  even- 
ing, February  10th,  was  a  large  and  enthusiastic  one ; 
among  the  speakers  were  the  Rev.  Dr.  Stephen  H. 
Tyng,  Rev.  Dr.  Patton,  Hon.  E.  D.  Culver,  Rev.  Dr. 
Peck,  Rev.  E.  H.  Chapin,  D.  D.,  and  Mr.  Hawkins. 
Effective  addresses  were  delivered  by  these  speakers, 
pointing  out  the  evils  of  the  traffic  and  the  imperative 
necessity  for  its  suppression.  The  press  lent  its  valu- 
able aid  in  answering  the  arguments  of  the  advocates 
of  rum.  The  New-York  Tribune  sent  forth,  daily, 
powerful  articles,  which  its  adversaries  were  not  able  to 
gainsay  or  refute.  Well-collected  statistics  from  Maine, 
showing  the  beneficial  effects  of  the  law  there,  were 
furnished  from  time  to  time  to  its  readers. 

It  was  in  the  midst  of  these  stirring  scenes  that  the 
following  letter  was  received,  which  will  explain  why 
it  was  that  Mr.  Hawkins  was  in  New  York :  — 

NEW  YORK,  February  4,  1852. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  You  must  really  forgive  me  for  not  an- 
swering your  letter  to  me  before  leaving  Baltimore.  ItJs, 
however,  better  late  than  never.  I  left  Baltimore  on  Tuesday, 
13th  January,  intending  to  go  into  Rhode  Island.  Upon  my  ar- 
rival in  this  city,  I  called  at  the  office  of  the  Olivers  &  Bro.  to 
have  a  chat  with  them  in  regard  to  the  progress  of  temperance 
in  this  city  and  State,  and  the  prospect  of  doing  any  thing  dur- 
ing the  session  of  the  present  legislature.  It  so  happened  that 
a  committee  of  that  efficient  organization,  the  City  Temper- 
ancc  Alliance,  were  in  the  office  talking  over  matters  when  I 
entered.  They  at,  once  asked  me  when-  I  was  from  and  where 
bound;  I  answered  them  as  above.  They  appeared  to  be  re- 


380  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

joiced  to  see  me,  and  in  less  than  ten  minutes  time  engaged  me 
to  remain  and  speak  in  different  parts  of  the  city,  for  thirty 
days. 

I  have  now  been  here  two  weeks  speaking  every  night  to 
crowded  houses,  on  the  subject  of  the  Maine  Law.  Great  ex- 
citement prevails  amongst  the  temperance  party,  while  the 
rum-sellers  show  evident  signs  of  fear  that  their  occupation  is 
well-nigh  gone.  God  speed  the  day  when  the  weeping  and 
wailing  caused  by  the  abominable  traffic  shall  cease. 

On  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  and  Thursday,  a  mighty  host  of 
temperance  men  and  women  assembled  in  Albany ;  I  was  there. 
The  object  of  this  great  demonstration,  was  the  presenting  of 
a  petition  to  the  legislature,  asking  for  a  law  similar  to  that  of 
Maine.  There  were  over  one  hundred  thousand  signers.  The 
probability  now  is  that  the  legislature  will  pass  such  a  law. 
During  the  above  three  days,  immense  audiences  were  gath- 
ered in  various  churches,  morning,  afternoon,  and  night.  You 
may  judge  of  the  great  interest  felt  in  this  subject,  when  I  tell 
you  that  during  the  three  days  the  State  Temperance  Society 
were  holding  their  Convention,  the  State  Temperance  Alliance 
was  also  in  session,  and  both  were  well  attended.  Western 
New  York  poured  in  by  hundreds,  causing  the  rum-sellers  to 
tremble.  They  asked,  what  does  all  this  mean  ?  They  were 
answered,  that  the  time  had  come  to  stop  the  rule  of  rum ! 
You  will  be  surprised  when  I  tell  you  that  gentlemen  of  wealth 
from  Western  New  York  who  were  present,  announced  to  the 
various  audiences  that  their  property  to  the  amount  of  fifteen 
millions  of  dollars  was  pledged  by  them  to  be  taxed  to  any 
amount  necessary  to  carry  out  and  enforce  the  law,  should  it  be 
enacted  by  the  legislature ;  and  that  if  circumstances  required 
that  the  whole  should  go,  let  it  go. 

At  the  close  of  my  engagement  here,  which  will  be  about 
the  25th  of  the  month,  I  shall  return  home,  only  for  a  few 
days,  and  then  return  to  lecture  in  the  interior  of  this  State  ; 
never  was  there  a  time  when  the  harvest  was  so  great  and  the 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  381 

laborers  so  few.  I  had  this  morning  a  very  interesting  and 
profitable  interview  with  that  good  friend  of  every  noble  cause, 
the  llev.  Dr.  Tyng.  He  was  somewhat  surprised  to  learn  that 
YOU  was  rny  son.  *  *  *  He  said  I  had  much  to  be  thank- 
ful to  God  for ;  he  has  indeed  done  much  for  me  and  my  fam- 
ily. I  must  now  close.  Remember  me  to  my  dear  daughter- 
in-law,  your  wife.  Most  affectionately  yours, 

JOHN  II.  "YV.  HAWKINS. 

During  the  time  he  remained  on  duty  in  New  York, 
he  addressed  an  immense  congregation  assembled  in 
Metropolitan  Hall,  after  effective  and  eloquent  re- 
marks had  been  made  by  Rev.  Stephen  H.  Tyng,  D.  D., 
Rev.  Dr.  Peck,  Hon.  C.  C.  Leigh,  and  others.  The 
following  extracts  are  made  from  his  address  as  reported 
in  the  papers. 

The  temperance  cause  had  had  its  "  ups  and  downs."  Its 
foes  were  often  from  quarters  where  they  were  least  looked 
for ;  from  individuals  who  had  not  considered  its  animus.  It 
Lad  received  more  newspaper  opposition  than  had  any  other 
enterprise  in  any  part  of  the  globe  ;  more  than  either  the  mis- 
sionary or  Bible-circulation  causes.  That  very  fact  when 
compared  with  its  advance,  was  evidence  of  divine  support. 
The  ravages  of  intemperance  were  not  confined  to  any  partic- 
ular class  of  men  ;  no  man  had  been  placed  so  high  in  the 
<cale  of  being  by  a  giant  intellect  —  no  man  had  been  placed  so 
high  in  office  by  his  fellow-men,  but  that  intemperance  might 
drag  him  down  and  offer  him  up  as  a  sacrifice  on  the  altar  of 
Bacchus.  In  reference  to  a  candidate  for  the  Presidency,  he  said, 
if  a  candidate  should  be  nominated  who  was  opposed  to  temper- 
ance, and  opposed  to  religion,  when  we  go  to  the  ballot-box  let  us 
deposit  a  ballot  that  will  do  what  is  ru/lit.  There  was  but  one 
office  in  this  republic  which  had  not  been  disgraced  by  drunken- 
ness, and  that  was  the  Presidency.  The  ravages  of  intemperance 


382  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

have  run  tnrough  all  society.  They  had  been  told  by  some  of 
the  newspapers  of  the  city  not  favorable  to  temperance,  that 
their  meetings  had  been  composed  of  women  and  children ;  and 
why  so  ?  Because  they  were  the  sufferers  from  the  delinquen- 
cies of  man.  He  had  seen  in  the  "  Tombs "  God's  image 
crushed  and  distorted  by  intoxicating  drink.  But  there  was  a 
tomb  beyond  the  present;  —  there  was  a  drunkard's  hell.  [The 
speaker  here  paused  for  a  moment,  and  a  death-like  silence 
pervaded  the  assembly.  Mr.  Hawkins  resumed.]  There 
was  no  child's  play  in  this  movement ;  no  more  than  there 
was  when  General  Taylor,  with  four  thousand  men,  scattered 
a  much  larger  force ;  and  the  cases  were  somewhat  similar. 
Some  of  their  opponents  had  said  that  there  was  very  little 
drunkenness  in  this  city.  One  paper  had  said  that  its  editor 
had  not  met  a  drunkard  in  Broadway  for  many  years.  Why, 
it  was  only  that  morning  that  he  (Mr.  H.)  had  seen  several 
there ;  he  had  seen  some  genteel,  some  scientific  drunkards. 
It  was  a  waste  of  time  for  newspapers  to  attack  reforms  of  this 
kind.  He  thought  an  editor  should  be  a  man  of  sense  and  a 
gentleman,  a  man  of  refinement ;  and  that  when  he  discussed  a 
subject  of  such  magnitude  he  should  treat  it  in  a  manly  and 
candid  way ;  he  should  not  attempt  to  ridicule  a  cause  of  so 
holy  a  character  as  this.  If  he  (the  editor)  was  not  convinced 
of  the  importance  of  the  cause,  they  would  convince  him.  One 
newspaper  in  this  city,  in  speaking  of  the  Temperance  Alliance, 
had  given  it  a  name.  They  did  not  wish  to  assume  a  name, 
but  he  did  not  know  but  what  it  was  a  "  Holy  Alliance."  They 
were  called  also  a  "  Holy  Alliance  of  Teetotallers,"  and  that 
it  was  composed  of  "  broken-down  parsons,  broken-down  pol- 
iticians, broken-down  Fourierites,  broken-down  fanatics,  broken- 
down  atheists,  broken-down  socialists,  and  broken-down  drunk- 
ards." Now,  he  had  seen  many  a  broken-wp  drunkard,  but 
he  had  never  seen  a  "  broken-down "  one.  It  was  clear 
they  had  fired  a  shot  into  the  enemy's  camp,  and  that  it  had 
taken  effect.  *  *  *  Members  of  the  same  family  were 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  383 

frequently  unaware  of  the  existence  of  intemperance  within 
its  own  circle,  as  his  own  experience  had  taught  him.  The 
extent  of  the  evil  is  often  unknown.  And  what  is  the 
remedy  ?  "  Oh,  moral  suasion,"  said  one  friend  to  him.  — 
"  What !  change  the  heart  of  a  rum-seller  by  moral  suasion  ? 
Let  us  try,"  said  he  ;  and  he  went  to  two  or  three  dratfl-shops 
without  success.  At  last  he  came  to  one,  and  said  to  him, 
"  Which  would  you  rather  do ;  have  a  law  passed  to  prevent 
your  selling  intoxicating  drink,  or  give  it  up  of  your  own  ac- 
cord ?  "  —  "I  would  rather  do  it  of  my  own  accord,"  said  the 
rum-seller.  "  See,"  then  said  my  friend ;  "  did  I  not  say  that 
moral  suasion  would  succeed?"  But  he  was  again  asked, 
'•  Why,  then,  do  you  not  give  up  the  business  ?  "  —  "  Because," 
said  the  rum-seller, "  it  is  not  my  interest  to  do  so.  I  will  not  give 
it  up  until  the  law  closes  me  up."  Now,  what  becomes  of  your 
moral  suasion  ?  The  States  of  New  Hampshire,  Vermont, 
Connecticut,  and  Rhode  Island,  had  all  failed,  by  their  former 
legislation,  to  accomplish  the  object.  Their  only  remedy  was 
in  a  prohibitory  law.  In  Maine  the  rum-seller  had  strutted 
up  and  down  his  shop  with  a  revolver  in  his  hand,  threatening 
any  officer  who  should  dare  to  enter  his  establishment;  but  all 
opposition  had  so  far  been  overcome.  Neal  Dow  had  begun 
at  the  right  end  and  was  determined  to  make  thorough  work 
of  it.  In  describing  the  operations'  of  the  Maine  Law,  he 
stated  that  a  proclamation  was  issued,  allowing  the  rum-sellers 
to  .-end  their  liquors  to  other  States  for  sale.  Many  in  this 
city  hud  already  begun  to  talk  of  sending  their  goods  to  another 
State  for  sale.  Blood  or  no  blood,  the  law  once  made  would 
be  enforced  ;  a  man  was  not  necessarily  a  coward  because  he 
was  a  temperance  man ;  let's  try  him.  When  one  Yankee 
dealt  with  another  Yankee,  it  was  "  diamond  cut  diamond  ; "  but 
it  had  been  (bund  that  the  ingenuity  of  the  Yankee  rurn-seller 
could  not  outwit  the  ingenuity  of  the  temperance  men.  *  *  * 

At  the  meeting  in  the  Green-street  Methodist  church, 


384  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H,    W.    HAWKINS. 

held  in  the  early  part  of  February,  several  addressee 
were  made.  The  Hon.  Thomas  N.  Woodruff  was  in- 
troduced to  the  audience,  and  in  a  speech  of  consider- 
able length  related  the  history  of  his  delinquencies 
while^i  slave  to  intemperance,  up  to'  the  time  when  he 
came  forward  in  that  church  and  signed  the  temper- 
ance pledge  under  the  encouragement  of  his  friend 
Mr.  Hawkins.  At  the  conclusion  of  his  address,  Mr. 
Hawkins  detained  the  audience  for  more  than  an  hour, 
illustrating  the  beneficial  operations  of  the  prohibitory 
law  in  Maine. 

During  the  continuance  of  these  extraordinary  meet- 
ings, the  New- York  Tribune  spoke  thus  cautiously  :  - 

Our  hopes  are  decidedly  stronger  than  they  were  a  week 
a^o.  The  temperance  convocations  in  Albany  last  week  have 
exerted  a  decidedly  wholesome  influence.  They  went  far  to 
show  that  the  temperance  men  are  in  earnest ;  and  whenever 
the  mere  politicians  shall  be  aware  that  such  is  the  fact,  the 
Maine  Law  will  go  through.  Another  election  may  be  neces- 
sary to  demonstrate  the  truth,  but  we  hope  not.  At  all  events 
the  prospect  has  brightened. 

Having  completed  his  engagement  with  the  "  New- 
York  City  Alliance,"  Mr.  Hawkins  returned  on  the 
24th  of  February  to  Baltimore.  The  month  of  March 
was  spent  in  canvassing  the  principal  towns  in  Mary- 
land ;  he  delivered  two  effective  addresses .  in  Centre- 
ville,  where  his  son*  was  then  settled  as  pastor  over  St. 
Paul's  Church. 

Having  been  solicited  by  the  friends  whom  he  had 
met  in  Albany  in  the  winter  to  present  the  subject  of 
prohibition  to  the  people  of  Western  New  York,  he 
left  Baltimore  on  the  17th  of  April  for  Jefferson,  Che- 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  385 

mung  County,  in  that  State.  After  lecturing  in  thirty 
three  towns,  he  proceeded  on  the  12th  of  July  to  Bos- 
ton, where  he  found  the  people  fully  awake  to  the 
subject  of  the  recent  legislation  in  Maine.  At  the 
solicitation  of  his  friends  he  remained  in  New  Eng- 
land until  the  16th  of  September,  during  which  time 
he  lectured  in  fifty-three  places  in  Massachusetts,  Con- 
necticut, and  Rhode  Island.  We  make  a  few  brief 
extracts  from  his  letter  of  July  18th,  written  at  Cam- 
bridgeport :  — 

On  going  into  Boston  on  Tuesday  morning,  I  received  an 
invitation  to  attend  the  County  Temperance  Convention  to  be 
held  the  next  day  at  Lawrence.  At  the  convention  the  com- 
mittee invited  me  to  go  through  Essex  County,  which  invita- 
tion I  accepted.  I  shall  commence  as  soon  as  I  can  get  my 
mouth  prepared.  I  have  had,  since  my  arrival  here,  every  tooth 
extracted  from  my  upper  jaw ;  the  operation  was  awfully  se- 
vere ;  it  will  be  some  months  before  my  speaking  powers  are  in 
perfect  condition  ;  at  present  I  am  compelled  to  use  a  tempo- 
rary set  of  teeth. 

This  affliction  did  not,  however,  damp  his  ardor, 
for  we  find  him  on  the  next  day  addressing  a  large 
audience  in  Lynn,  the  next  at  Salem,  and  so  on 
through  different  parts  of  the  State. 

The  new  liquor  law  goes  into  operation  here  on  Thursday 
next,  the  22d  inst.,  and  great  and  effective  arrangements  are 
on  foot  to  enforce  it.  The  rum-sellers  begin  to  believe  it,  as 
they  are  at  this  moment  shipping  thousands  of  casks  to  distant 
portri  ;  some  of  the  wharves  are  groaning  under  the  weight  of 
the  poison  upon  them.  Several  very  heavy  ship-loads  are  soon 
to  leave  port  for  the  Mediterranean,  New  York,  Baltimore, 
Philadelphia,  and  the  South ;  in  fact,  for  every  place  except 
1  Down  Kast." 

33 


386  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

On  the  2d  of  August  he  writes  thus  from  Boston :  — 

The  "  Maine  Liquor  Law  "  as  passed  by  the  last  legislature 
of  this  State  is  strictly  enforced,  except  in  Boston.  Our  efforts 
have  heen  forestalled  by  the  mayor  and  board  of  aldermen 
in  granting  over  six  hundred  licenses  under  the  old  law,  and 
before  the  present  one  was  enacted.  It  is  supposed  by  many 
that  these  licenses  will  hold  good,  inasmuch  as  they  paid  a 
price  for  them. 

In  Rhode  Island  the  law  is  generally  observed,  except  in 
Newport.  Providence  has  not  one  open  grog-shop  or  bar-room. 
They  have  destroyed  many  hundred  gallons  seized  under  the 
law,  without  any  opposition  whatever.  The  traffic  in  Boston  is 
doomed,  for  the  country  towns  are  determined  to  destroy,  at  the 
ballot-box,  all  the  political  and  rum  influence  that  Boston  has 
for  so  many  years  exercised  over  the  rest  of  this  goodly 
State. 

The  influence  here  against  the  law  is  tremendous ;  six  daily 
papers  are  using  all  their  influence  against  us,  besides  two  new 
papers  started  expressly  to  defend  the  rum  interest.  I  have  no 
doubt,  however,  of  our  ultimate  success. 

From  Groveland,  August  llth,  he  writes :  - 

My  engagements  in  this  State  end  on  next  Sabbath  evening, 
August  15th,  at  Andover.  I  have  a  most  cordial  invitation  to 
go  into  Rhode  Island  and  lecture  through  the  State.  I  shall 
begin  with  Providence,  on  Monday  evening,  16th;  from  thence 
to  Connecticut,  where  I  am  much  wanted. 

On  the  8th  of  September,  he  writes,  from  Provi- 
dence :  — 

I  have  just  this  moment  received  a  letter  from  my  good 
friend  Mr.  C.  C.  Leigh,  President  of  the  New-York  City  Al- 
liance, inviting  me  to  labor  in  that  city  for  one  or  two  months. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWK1XS.  387 

I  have  not  accepted  the  offer  yet,  but  shall  decide  in  reference 
to  it  when  I  reach  New  York. 

Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to  Baltimore  about  the  first 
of  October,  to  rest  a  few  days.  Having  accepted  the 
offer  of  the  "  Alliance,"  we  find  him  in  the  early  part 
of  this  month,  producing  not  a  little  stir  among  the  peo- 
ple of  New  York.  October  28th,  he  writes  :  — 

I  am  well,  and  holding  the  largest  meetings  in  the  "  Tent  " 
I  have  ever  addressed  ;  the  battle  waxes  hotter  and  hotter  as 
the  elections  draw  near.  B  -  has  acted  as  I  expected,  and 
as  must  be  expected  of  all  temperance  men,  who  love  their 
party  more  than  temperance.  You  will  no  doubt  read  ni.s 
leader  of  this  week  ;  I  have  no  confidence  in  him  as  an  out-and- 
out  temperance  man.  Give  my  fishing  respects  to  brother 
Martin.* 

Mr.  Hawkins  concluded  his  labors  in  New  York  with 
credit  to  himself  and  some  profit  to  the  cause,  and  went 
to  Connecticut.  From  Hartford,  Nov.  12th,  he  writes 
thus  to  his  son  :  — 

Your  letter  to  me  at  New  York  was  received.  I  was  truly 
glad  at  the  information  conveyed  by  your  letter.  At  first  I  felt 
a  little  disappointed  at  the  result  ;  but  when  you  stated  that  you 
had  contemplated  naming  the  little  one  after  your  own  sainted 
mother,  oh,  what  a  thrill  it  sent  through  my  whole  frame  !  She 
was  indeed  a  saint  on  earth,  and  is,  no  doubt,  a  saint  in  heaven.  If 
God  in  his  infinite  goodness  spares  the  life  of  the  dear  one  so  that 
I  can  be  permitted  to  see  it,  and  pronounce  the  name  once  more, 
—  Rachel  Thompson,  —  how  much  delight  it  will  give  me.  *  *  * 
Vie  have  held,  probably,  the  largest  and  most  enthusiastic 
Temperance  Convention  ever  before  assembled  in  this 


*  His  son,  to  whom  this  letter  was  addressed,  was  at  this  time  residing 
at  Glens  Falls,  N.  Y.  Its  location  on  the  Hudson  and  near  Lake  George, 
afforded  ^ood  fishing  facilities. 


388  LIFE   OP   JOHN  H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

State ;  it  lasted  two  days,  with  meetings  in  the  evening.  The 
most  able  addresses  I  ever  heard  were  here  delivered,  by  Rev. 
E.  H.  Chapin,  Rev.  Mr.  Wolcot,  General  Riley,  J.  B.  Gough, 
and — John  H.  W.  Hawkins,  of  Baltimore  ;  this  last  named  gen- 
tleman I  believe  you  have  some  acquaintance  with.  I  intend 
remaining  in  this  State  during  most  of  the  winter.  I  am  to  be 
at  Middletown  on  Tuesday,  the  23d  of  this  month,  to  attend 
the  County  Convention,  &c.  I  had  a  remarkable  dream  the 
other  night ;  it  may  be  of  service  to  friend  Martin.  I  dreamed 
that  trout  of  monstrous  size  came  up  to  the  surface  of  the 
water,  and  I  ran  my  arm  down  their  throats  and  threw  them 
out  upon  the  banks  of  the  river.  A  novel  way  of  catching 
fish,  lut  — it  was  all  a  dream. 

Mr.  Hawkins  spent  the  remainder  of  1852  in  Con- 
necticut, lecturing  nearly  every  evening.  In  the  month 
of  February  we  find  him  in  Montreal,  having  taken  in 
his  route  the  towns  in  northern  New  York,  and  return- 
ing to  Boston  by  way  of  Vermont,  His  labors  in 
March,  April,  and  May,  were  devoted,  principally,  to 
canvassing  New  Hampshire  and  Vermont.  In  a  letter 
to  his  son  from  Charlestown,  New  Hampshire,  he 
says : — 

I  remained  in  Boston  until  the  21st  of  March.  I  was  pres- 
ent and  heard  the  address  of  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Lovejoy  against  the 
Liquor  Law,  and  his  argument  for  the  unconditional  repeal  of 
it  because  it  was  a  violation  of  the  law  of  God!  I  suppose 
you  have  seen  some  extracts  from  it,  as  it  has  been  published 
in  the  papers  very  extensively.  I  also  heard  the  rejoinder  of 
the  Rev.  John  Pierpont ;  it  was  complete  and  satisfactory. 
*  *  *  My  meetings  have  been  crowded  thus  far,  and  there 
is  much  healthy  excitement  throughout  Vermont  and  New 
Hampshire  upon  the  subject  of  a  prohibitory  liquor  law. 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  389 

Iii  a  letter  dated  Farmington,  Me.,  August  27th,  he 
says : — 

I  have  been  lecturing  for  two  months  past  in  various  parts 
of  Maine,  and  can  give  your  people  some  idea  of  the  practical 
operation  of  the  Maine  Law,  and  the  wonders  it  would  work 
if  adopted  in  the  State  of  New  York.  There  is  now  an  effort 
made  by  a  fraction  of  one  of  the  parties  here  to  overthrow  the 
law,  but  their  defeat  is  certain.  The  election  for  Governor 
and  legislature  will  take  place  on  the  12th  of  September,  and 
the  State  is  now  being  canvassed  in  every  nook  and  corner.  I 
am  lecturer  at  large,  while  county  meetings  are  addressed 
by  Neal  Dow,  Hon.  Mr.  Vinton,  of  Gray,  Rev.  Mr.  Wheeler, 
of  Bangor,  Rev.  Mr.  Thompson,  of  Augusta,  and  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Peck,  of  Portland,  and  many  others.  *  *  *  I  shall  leave 
this  State  for  New  York  on  September  5th,  and  after  attending 
the  World's  Temperance  Convention  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
which  closes  its  deliberations  on  September  9th,  will  proceed 
to  Glens  Falls.  *  *  * 

After  spending  a  few  days  in  recreation  at  his  son's 
house  in  Glens  Falls,  he  visited  his  home  in  Baltimore, 
where  he  made  arrangements  for  an  extensive  tour 
through  the  States  of  Indiana,  Michigan,  Illinois,  and 
Wisconsin.  We  make  brief  extracts  from  a  letter 
dated  Milwaukie,  Wis.,  Nov,  9th,  1853. 

I  have  now  been  in  this  State  since  the  9th  of  October,  and 
have  had  altogether  a  pleasant  tour.  I  am  to  lecture  to-night  at  a 
place  called  Wau-wa-toca,  about  five  miles  out  of  town.  *  *  * 
Thursday,  November  10th,  at  Racine ;  thru  at  Kenosha, 
Chicago,  and  so  on  through  the  State;.  This  accomplished,  my 
present  plan  is  to  take  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad,  com- 
mencing at  Michigan  City,  and  through  to  Detroit,  lecturing  at 


390  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

all  the  principal  places.  From  Detroit  to  Toledo  and  Munroe, 
taking  the  back  track  upon  the  Michigan  Southern  and  North- 
ern Indiana  Railroad,  to  Laporte  and  South  Bend  ;  thence  to 
Lafayette,  and  so  on  down  to  Madison  and  homeward,  which 
will  take  me  probably  to  February,  1854. 

We  have  not  space  for  an  extended  account  of  this 
interesting  tour.  We  give  his  remarks  on  one  occasion 
only,  as  reported  in  the  Racine  Advocate :  — 

The  address  of  Mr.  Hawkins  at  the  court  house  on  Thurs- 
day deserves  more  than  the  passing  notice  we  gave  it  on 
Friday.     He  commenced  his  remarks  by  giving  a  history  of 
the  origin  of  the  first  temperance  organization  in  this  country, 
which  took  place  in  Boston  in  1813,  afterwards  revived  in 
1826,  under  the  auspices  of  such  men  as  Dr.  Beecher,  of 
Boston,   Rev.    Dr.   Perry,   of    Bradford,   and   other  leading 
divines  of  Massachusetts.      He  attributed  its  success  to  its 
origin  in  the  church,  etc.,  etc.     Some  men  could  be  found  who 
would  deny  the  temperance  cause  its  paternity  in  this  country ; 
but  as  long  as  the  origin  of  temperance  is  not  what  we  seek, 
but   the   end  of  intemperance,  there  is  no  occasion  to  quarrel 
about  non-essentials.     The  speaker  then   spoke   of  the  sur- 
prising benefits  which  had  been  conferred  upon  the  unfortunate 
inebriates  of  the  State  of  Maine  by  the  prohibitory  liquor  law 
of  that  State.     He  called  it  emphatically   « the  poor  man's 
law ; "  a  law  which  had  been  the  means  of  more  moral  and 
pecuniary  good  to  the  people  of  that  State  than  all  the  other 
laws  upon  her  statute-book. 

He  spoke  on  this  point  not  as  a  novice,  but  as  an  "  experi- 
enced man."  The  great  advantages  of  this  law  over  the  ordi- 
nary laws  upon  this  subject,  was  the  fact  that  this  law  removed 
the  temptation  entirely  out  of  reach  of  the  debased  appetite 
of  the  unfortunate  inebriate,  who  had  lost  all  power  of  control- 
ling his  appetite.  The  glory  which  succeeded  this  enactment 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.   HAWKINS.  391 

had  given  that  State  a  preeminent  name ;  like  a  star,  "  like  a 
comet,"  she  shone,  and  the  radiance  of  her  brilliant  beams  was 
seen  across  the  wide  Atlantic,  and  from  England  was  heard 
the  cry,  "  Give  us  the  Maine  Law,"  "  Give  us  the  reflection  of 
this  glory-beaming  star."  Beer-bloated  and  gin-guzzling  Eng- 
land saw  no  relief  but  in  the  enactment  of  this  law.  The 
speaker  was  able  to  produce  the  most  irrefragable  testimony  of 
those  who  had  opportunity  of  knowing,  that  seventy-five  per 
cent  of  the  criminal  business  of  the  State  of  Maine  had  fallen 
off  since  the  enactment  of  this  law ;  that  poorhouses  and  jails, 
to  whose  inmates  he  had  formerly  lectured,  were  rapidly  be- 
coming tenantless.  He  challenged  any  man  to  disprove  by  the 
testimony  of  any  respectable  citizen  of  the  State  of  Maine,  a 
single  assertion  which  he  had  made,  while,  if  any  one  doubted, 
he  would  give  the  names  of  some  of  the  most  distinguished 
citizens  in  the  State  in  proof  that  his  assertions  were  correct. 
These  names  he  gave  to  the  meeting.  He  had  his  own  expe- 
rience, and  that  of  seven  other  men  who  lectured  in  the  State 
last  summer,  to  convince  him  of  the  truth  of  what  he  stated  ; 
and  in  a  convention  at  Bangor,  which  was  attended  by  delegates 
from  all  parts  of  the  State,  the  question  was  put  to  the  whole 
body,  if  any  one  of  them  knew  where  liquor  could  be  obtained 
in  an  open  manner ;  and  not  a  man  of  them  all  could  tell  of 
such  a  place  in  any  part  of  the  State. 

He  asked  what  probability  there  was  of  the  diminution  of 
stealing,  provided  the  restraint  of  the  law  should  be  taken  from 
it ;  and  said  the  law  was  just  as  successful  for  the  suppression 
of  drinking  as  the  law  against  stealing  was  successful  for  its 
purposes. 

Mr.  Hawkins  possesses  a  wonderful  power  over  the  minds 
of  his  hearers.  His  aptness  at  description,  and  the  deep  pa- 
thos of  his  home  scenes,  will  start  the  brine  from  the  eye 
before  the  weather-beaten  face  has  had  prognostications  of  a 
storm.  We  have  not  begun  to  give  any  thing  like  a  sketch 


392  LIFE   OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

of  what  he  said,  nor  to  do  him  even  partial  justice ;  indeed, 
we  have  not  mentioned  one-fourth  of  the  points  made  by 
him,  yet  our  article  is  already  too  long.  We  are  gratified 
in  being  able  to  say  that  he  is  expected  to  lecture  here  again 
on  the  evening  of  Sunday  the  20th. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

"  From  East  to  West  resounds  the  story, 

'  The  temperance  banner  proudly  waves ; ' 
Maine  taught  the  world  the  march  of  glory, 

Her  gallant  sons  no  longer  slaves  ! 
With  light  and  love  full  long  they  pleaded ; 
But  when  the  Law  in  thunder  spoke, 
It  burst  their  chains  with  lightning  stroke, 
And  peace  and  happiness  succeeded." 

WE  have  not  space  to  give  the  details  of  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins' tour  through  the  West,  in  1853-4.  The  enthusiasm 
which  he  enkindled  spread  like  the  prairie  fire.  "  I 
have  no  doubt,"  he  wrote,  "  but  that  the  Maine  Law 
will  be  carried  in  this  State  (Wisconsin)  by  not  less 
than  ten  thousand  majority.  This  city  (Milwaukie), 
it  is  true,  has  gone  by  a  large  majority  against  the 
law ;  this  was  expected,  owing  to  the  corrupt  German 
population  here." 

From  Kalamazoo  he  writes,  Nov.  30th :  — 

I  have  crowded  houses  every  night.  By  the  way,  this  is  the 
hist  day  of  grace  with  the  rum-sellers  of  Michigan.  To-mor- 
row the  law  goes  into  operation,  and  you  may  depend  upon  it,  the 
temperance  men  of  this  State  will  make  the  "  fur  fly,"  and  the 
rum  too.  We  shall  see,  what  we  shall  see.  The  people  which 
sat  in  darkness  have  seen  great  light,  I  am  much  interested 
in  reading  Miss  Bremer's  work;  she  speaks  in  high  terms,  as 
she  should,  of  the  temperance  reformation;  I  do  not  think  it 
worth  while  to  notice  the  mistakes  she  makes  about  myself.  She 
is  not  a  Trollope  or  a  Dickens,  or  as  other  foreigners  who  have 
come  to  (his  country,  and  alter  receiving  (lie  kindest  treatment 

(393) 


394  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

have  gone  home  and  abused  our  hospitality.  Miss  Bremer 
breathes  the  spirit  of  a  true  Christian.  Now  for  my  appoint- 
ments." 

Then  follow  the  names  of  twenty-five  towns  in  In- 
diana, requiring  a  lecture  every  day.  He  continues:  — 

Hard  work,  night  after  night ;  no  rest  for  the  wicked  in  this 
life ;  but,  dear  son,  there  is  a  rest  for  those  who  fear  God 
and  do  his  will.  I  am  thankful  that  my  physical  and  mental 
health  enables  me  to  hold  out. 

Having  completed  his  first  engagement  in  the  West, 
Mr.  Hawkins  returned  to  Baltimore  late  in  the  winter; 
but  so  urgent  was  the  demand  for  his  services  in  that 
section  of  the  country,  while  the  subject  of  a  prohibi- 
tory law  was  in  agitation,  that  he  returned  to  Indiana 
early  in  March  following.  He  writes  thus  from  Peru, 
Indiana,  March  25,  1854 :  — 

I  have  had  my  hands  full  since  I  left  home  in  February. 
We  spent  four  days  at  Pittsburg,  two  at  Wooster,  Ohio,  four, 
profitably  I  hope,  in  Cincinnati,  thence  to  Madison.  I  lectured 
two  days  in  Lawrenceburg,  and  while  on  the  steamboat  to  the 
passengers  in  the  cabin ;  from  thence  by  railroad  to  Greens- 
burgh.  Here  your  mother  has  come  to  a  dead  halt,  and  will 
remain  until  May ;  that  month  she  expects  to  spend  in  Indian- 
apolis, while  I  lecture  in  distant  parts  of  the  State.  About 
the  15th  of  July  I  shall  ask  leave  of  absence  for  two  weeks  ; 
that  will  be  in  the  midst  of  harvest.  I  shall  then  go  to  Chi- 
cago, and  thence  to  Sheboygan  Falls.  It  is  impossible  to  tell 
you  where  a  letter  will  reach  me,  as  I  am  under  the  direction 
of  the  Indiana  State  Temperance  Committee,  who  send  me 
where  they  please.  As  regards  the  temperance  cause  in  this 
State,  there  is  not  a  State  whose  prospects  are  better  for  carry- 
ing through  a  prohibitory  law.  The  whole  body  of  Methodist 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.    W.   HAWKINS.  395 

clergy,  with  but  few  exceptions,  —  I  know  of  none,  —  have  or 
will  canvass  their  respective  districts  for  prohibition.  *  *  * 
Just  before  my  return  to  Baltimore  in  the  winter  I  attended 
a  large  State  Temperance  Convention  at  Indianapolis.  Twelve 
hundred  delegates  were  present,  from  all  parts  of  the  State  ; 
great  unanimity  and  firmness  characterized  their  whole  pro- 
ceedings for  two  days  and  two  evenings.  Twelve  thousand 
dollars  were  pledged  to  carry  out  the  campaign  for  the  present 
year —  1854.  I  am  engaged  by  the  convention,  per  resolution, 
to  canvass  the  State.  I  shall  probably  remain  until  September 
or  October.  I  neglected  to  mention  that  in  January  last  I  was 
present  at  another  State  Temperance  Convention  at  Harrisburg, 
Pa. ;  its  deliberations  continued  three  days.  Nearly  one  thou- 
sand delegates  were  present.  General  Gary,  a  good  friend  of 
mine,  and  Neal  Dow  were  present. 

We  subjoin  extracts  from  a  few  letters  addressed  to 
Mr.  Hawkins,  showing  the  demand  in  Indiana  for  his 
services :  — 

SHELBYVILLE,  March  7,  1854. 

*  "We  shall  joyfully  hail  your  visit.  "We  are  ap- 
proaching a  crisis  of  thrilling  interest  to  our  State.  May  the 
good  Lord  preserve  your  life  and  health  for  the  work  before 
you  !  "We  have  made  appointments  for  you  on  Monday  and 
Tuesday.  On  Tuesday  there  will  be  great  numbers  from  all 
parts  of  the  county  to  hear  you. 


GOSHEN,  Ind.,  April  26,  1854. 

We  expect  to  have  a  large  mass  temperance 
meeting  of  the  county  on  the  27th  of  May.  It  is  the  ardent 
wish  of  all  who  heard  you  here  last  winter,  to  have  you  pres- 
ent. We  have  promised  the  public  a  distinguished  speaker  on 
that  occasion,  and  hope  you  will  not  disappoint  the  public  ex- 
pectation. 


396  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

BEDFORD,  Ind.,  May  15,  1854. 

The  Vigilance  Committee  will  be  pleased  to  have  you  attend 
our  county  convention  on  the  25th  inst.  We  have  to  meet 

Senator on  the  26th  or  27th,  to  debate  the  temperance 

question.  He  says  that  to  drink  good  liquor  is  a  Bible  doc- 
trine ;  that  temperance  has  arisen  from  abolitionism,  raised  in 
corruption  to  overthrow  this  government,  and  take  away  all  our 
liberties,  &c.,  &c.,  We  shall  be  much  pleased  if  you  can  come 
and  stay  two  or  three  days.  The  debate  will  bring  out  a  crowd. 

In  July  Mr.  Hawkins  visited  Fond  du  Lac,  Oshkosh, 
and  other  places  in  the  neighborhood  of  Green  Bay. 
After  stopping  a  few  days  at  Sheboygan  Falls,  where 
his  daughter  resided,  he  returned  to  Baltimore.  Severe 
illness  of  his  daughter  detained  him  there  until  Jan- 
uary, 1855. 

After  spending  part  of  the  winter  in  New  Jersey,  he 
went  to  New  Hampshire  to  fill  some  engagements  there. 
In  the  month  of  June  he  lectured  in  tip  principal  towns 
in  Tompkins  County,  N.  Y.  On  tn?21st  of  the  same 
month  he  was  present  at  the  meeting  of  the  .State  Tem- 
perance Convention  at  Albany.  On  the  12th  of  July 
he  lectured  to  good  audiences  at  Rochester,  and  on  the 
21st  and  22d  at  Lyons,  Wayne  Co.  The  papers  in 
that  section  of  the  State  spoke  of  the  marked  attention 
which  his  addresses  in  behalf  of  prohibition  com- 
manded, and  the  high  appreciation  in  which  he  was 
personally  held.  The  Lockport  Weekly  Journal  of  July 
18,  1855,  in  referring  to  his  efforts  says  :  "  He  is  one  of 
the  veterans  in  the  glorious  enterprise,  and  has  been  in 
the  field  doing  most  effective  service  for  fourteen  years. 
He  should  meet  with  a  warm  reception  everywhere." 

After  completing  an  engagement  in  Niagara  Co.,  he 
went  to  Niagara  and  lectured  to  large  and  attentive 


LIFE    OF   JOH$   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  397 

audiences  in  one  of  the  public  halls  of  that  city.  He 
continued  his  labors  night  after  night,  with  unabated 
zeal,  during  the  oppressive  heat  of  August. 

From  Lockport,  August  17,  he  writes  thus  to  his 
son:  — 

On  the  24th  of  August  I  expect  to  go  to  Buffalo,  at  the  so- 
licitation of  several  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  of  that  place. 
L  am  to  speak  in  one  of  the  halls  on  that  night.  They  wish  to 
engage  my  services  there  for  awhile.  After  the  first  of  Sep- 
tember, I  have  about  thirty  appointments  to  fill  along  the  line 
of  the  railroad,  commencing  at  Batavia. 

On  the  26th  he  returned  to  Lockport,  and  addressed 
the  children  of  the  various  Sabbath  Schools  in  that 
place. 

It  appears  from  his  letters  to  his  wife,  that  before 
commencing  his  journey  homeward  he  spent  one  week' 
in  Canada,  lecturing  at  Hamilton,  Paris,  Brantford, 
London,  St.  Catharine,  and  Toronto.  After  a  short 
visit  home,  in  October,  we  find  him  again  in  the  West, 
He  thus  writes,  under  date  of  Nov.  1,  1855,  from  Co- 
lumbus, Ohio :  — 

I  reached  this  city  upon  the  very  day  of  the  session  of  the 
Grand  Division  of  the  Sons  of  Temperance  ;  they  voted  me 
the  privilege  of  sitting  with  them  ;  1  find  here  many  warm 
friends.  They  welcomed  me  to  the  State,  and  appointments 
were  at  once  made  for  rne.  I  am  to  be  at  Woostcr  on  MOM*. 
day  and  Tuesday,  Nov.  5th  and  Gth.  *  *  *  I  commenced 
writing  this  letter  in  Columbus ;  I  finish  it  in  this  place,  Mans- 
field. You  may  answer  this  at  Alliance,  1  send  you  a  list  of 
my  appointments  in  various  parts  of  the  State, 

A  letter  from  Dayton.  Ohio,  dated  December  4tli, 

34 


398  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

says,  "  In  nineteen  days  from  this  time  I  hope  to  be  at 
home,  in  time  to  enjoy  a  good  Christmas  dinner  with 
you  all." 

After  a  short  visit  home,  it  will  be  seen  by  the  sub- 
joined note  that  he  returned  to  the  West :  — 

FORT  WAYNE,  Ind.,  March  27,  1856. 

I  have  passed  through  the  most  severe  winter  I  have  known 
for  many  years.  I  have  been  compelled  to  give  up  most  of  my 
appointments,  in  consequence  of  the  deep  snows'  rendering  it 
impossible  for  me  to  meet  them  ;  the  winter  has  broken  and  I 
have  mud  instead  of  snow  to  contend  with.  I  have  appoint- 
ments made  up  to  the  llth  of  April.  *  *  *  I  shall  be  at 
Terre  Haute,  Ind.,  about  April  1 4th,  at  which  place  a  letter 
will  reach  me. 

Mr.  Hawkins  returned  home  in  May,  after  an  absence 
of  four  months  on  a  most  laborious  tour,  and  during  a 
season  exceedingly  trying  to  his  constitution.  While 
in  Baltimore  he  received  from  an  unknown  friend  the 
following  note  of  caution  in  respect  to  his  health  ;  it 
was  found  among  his  papers.  Its  date  is  Baltimore, 
May  19th,  1856.  After  furnishing  some  facts  on  the 
subject  of  the  adulteration  of  liquors,  and  the  "  deadly 
traffic,"  the  writer  says  :  — 

I  am  thankful  your  life  has  been  preserved.  But  I  fear 
Satan  may  get  the  advantage  of  you.  In  extreme  bad  weather, 
or  when  you  are  sick,  the  people  do  not  expect  you  to  fill 
appointments  ;  neither  does  God  ;  for  he  will  have  mercy  and 
not  sacrifice.  But  the  Devil  would  be  glad  to  get  you  out  of 
the  way  by  urging  you  to  extremes,  by  which  your  health 
would  be  injured  and  your  constitution  undermined.  Self- 
preservation  is  the  first  law  of  nature.  I  would  not  have  you 
grow  weary  in  well  doing ;  rather  be  at  it  and  always  at  it. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS.  399 

But  be  discreet,  be  moderate,  and  yet  energetic,  earnest,  and 
you  will  accomplish  more  in  this  way.  By  taking  prudent  care 
of  yourself  you  may  live  a  score  of  years,  and  do  more  than 
by  filling  every  appointment,  regardless  of  the  laws  of  health. 
God  help  you  to  be  wise  as  the  serpent  and  harmless  as  the 
dove,  both  to  yourself  and  others.  Yours  truly, 

A  STRANGER. 

Mr.  Hawkins  was  employed  at  intervals  during  the 
summer  of  1856  in  various  places  in  New  Jersey  and 
in  his  native  State.  Nov.  8th  he  writes  to  his  son  from 
Baltimore,  saying :  — 

The  elections  are  now  over,  and  the  minds  of  the  people 
becoming  somewhat  settled,  and  I  shall  proceed  to  the  "  East " 
to  fill  some  field  of  labor. 

From  New  York,  November  25th,  he  writes  :  — 

I  left  Baltimore  on  Saturday  last,  and  shall  remain  in  this 
city  until  December  1st,  at  the  suggestion  of  many  of  my  tem- 
perance friends, — all  of  them  men  of  influence.  They  wish 
to  consult  in  regard  to  the  establishment  of  an  agency  whose 
efforts  shall  be  directed  to  the  reformation  of  drunkards.  They 
think  such  an  agency  is  needed,  and  that  it  is  practicable  and 
will  result  in  great  good  ;  they  wish  me  to  undertake  it.  They 
are  now  holding  private  meetings,  and  laying  plans,  etc.,  etc. 
I  find  in  Mr.  C.  C.  Leigh  a  good  friend,  who  is  ready  to  render 
me  any  aid  in  his  power. 

Mr.  Hawkins  accepted  the  agency,  which,  however, 
was  not  to  go  into  operation  until  early  in  January, 
1857.  In  the  mean  time  he  proceeded  to  Boston  to  fill 
a  number  of  appointments  in  that  vicinity. 

From  New  York.  January  10th,  1857,  he  writes:  — 


400  LIFE    OF    JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

I  reached  this  city  on  Thursday  night,  and  last  evening  met 
the  committee,  and  we  completed  the  arrangements  in  regard 
to  my  mission  in  this  city. 

January  28th  he  writes  :  — 

My  health  is  good,  and  I  have  work  enough  to  keep  me 
busy  day  and  night.  I  do  not  get  to  bed  some  nights  until 
twelve  or  one  o'clock.  I  have  so  little  time  to  write  during  the 
day,  that  I  must  do  it  at  night,  when  I  return  from  the  meet- 
ings or  from  visits  to  the  inebriate  at  his  home.  I  have  been 
able  to  do  some  good  already.  I  am  to  pay  Sing  Sing  another 
visit,  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the  prisoners.  My  hands 
are  full  of  work.  God  is  with  me,  and  that  is  the  best  of  all. 

Under  date  of  February  15th  he  writes  :  — 

I  have  just  returned  from  the  Penitentiary  on  Blackwell's 
Island,  where  I  addressed  about  one  thousand  convicts,  male 
and  female.  It  was  indeed  a  sad  sight ;  so  many  human  beings 
incarcerated  for  crimes,  nine-tenths  at  least  of  which  have 
resulted,  directly  or  indirectly,  from  the  use  of  intoxicating 
drink.  Many  a  tear  was  shed  while  I  was  speaking.  I  read 
to  them  the  10th  Psalm,  and  commented  upon  the  7-11,  14-18 
verses.  *  *  *  We  are  having  a  circular  struck  off,  a 
copy  of  which  I  shall  send  you.  * 

*  To  the  friends  of  Temperance  and  Christianity  in  this  city  and  vicinity  : 

The  New- York  City  Temperance  Alliance,  convinced  of  the  necessity 
of  making  some  extra  effort  to  stay  the  tide  of  intemperance  that  threat- 
ens to  overwhelm  our  city  and  ruin  our  families,  have  engaged  as  a  City 
Missionary,  Mr.  John  Hawkins,  of  Baltimore,  one  of  the  original  Wash- 
ingtoni&DB  who  has  labored  in  the  temperance  cause  for  the  last  sixteen 
years  with  great  acceptance  and  success. 

Mr.  H.'s  efforts  will  be  mainly  made  for  the  reformation  of  inebriates, 
and  the  formation  of  Juvenile  Temperance  Societies,  but  he  will  lecture 
in  various  localities  of  the  city  when  desired,  and  thus  aid  in  the  general 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  401 

February  18th  he  writes :  — 

I  am  well,  and  full  of  work,  night  and  day.  Last  night  I 
sp  ke  to  a  grand  audience  in  the  Mariners'  Church,  corner  of 
Catherine  and  Madison  Streets ;  to-night  a  great  meeting  is  to 
be  held  in  the  Tabernacle ;  I  may  have  something  to  say  there. 

March  18th  he  writes  thus :  — 

The  work  of  visiting  the  intemperate  increases 
on  my  hands ;  I  am  much  encouraged,  as  the  friends  of  the 
cause  are  convinced  that,  under  the  blessing  of  God,  I  am  doing 
a  good  work.  Mr.  Gray,  the  Superintendent  of  the  "  Tombs  " 
—  the  city  prison  —  has  opened  wide  the  door  for  my  labors. 
The  governors  of  the  Almshouses  on  Blackwell's,  Randall's, 
and  Ward  Islands,  and  the  Penitentiary,  have  given  me  a 
hearty  invitation  to  visit  the  above  places  as  often  as  possible. 
The  chaplains  and  keepers  of  the  above  places  receive  me  with 
great  kindness.  Capt.  Oliver  Clark,  who  commands  a  nice 
little  steamboat,  in  the  employ  of  the  city,  which  plies  between 
there  and  Staten  Island  several  times  in  the  day,  has  placed 
his  boat  at  my  service.  My  friends  here  are  legion.  I  should 

work  of  suppressing  the  great  and  growing  evils  of  intemperance.     We 
commend  him  to  your  kind  sympathies  and  generous  aid. 

JAMES  O.  BENNETT,  President. 
C.  J.  WARBEN,  Secretary. 

CHAS.  C.  LEIGH, 


EDWARD  FALCONER, 
NOAH  WORRALL, 
J.  S.  FOUNTAIN, 


*  Finance  Committee. 


We,  the  subscribers,  approve  of  the  objects  of  the  New- York  City  Tem- 
perance Alliance,  as  above  stated,  and  recommend  the  friends  of  morality 
and  virtue  to  aid  Mr.  Hawkins  by  their  countenance,  their  prayers,  and 
their  pecuniary  offerings. 

REV.  STEPHEN  H.  TYNG,  REV.  GEORGE  POTTS, 

JKS.-I;   T.   PECK,  "       S\Mn:i,  Oscoon, 

0.  T.    Hi. in .1  i  "       THOMAS    l)i;\\ii 

'•'       E.  II.  OHAI-I-.  "      ISAAC 

34* 


A402  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

be  glad  to  see  you  here,  to  show  you  in  some  measure  the 
"  modus  operand! "  of  my  hooking  the  drunkards.  You  know  I 
am  a  good  fisherman,  and  I  hope  by  divine  assistance,  follow- 
ing the  disciples  of  Christ,  who  were  made  "  fishers  of  men," 
that  I  shall  not  be  altogether  unsuccessful. 

April  16.  *  *  *  I  have  but  a  moment  to  write  ;  I  am 
full  of  business  from  morning  until  late  at  night.  Your  mother 
too  is  very  ill,  and  has  not  been  out  of  her  room  for  more  than 
a  week  ;  she  is  now  under  the  care  of  Dr.  S.  S.  Fitch.  I  must 
close,  as  I  have  several  patients  to  visit  this  afternoon,  and  a 
speech  to  make  at  night. 

May  12.  *  *  *  We  are  to  have  a  great  rum-sellers' 
demonstration  to-night  in  the  Park.  They  are  now  putting  up 
the  stands  for  the  speakers.  It  is  nothing  less  than  treason 
and  rebellion  against  the  laws  of  the  State,  passed  too  by  their 
own  friends ;  the  meeting  will  do  the  cause  of  temperance 
good,  as  it  happens  during  Anniversary-week. 

Mr.  Hawkins  not  receiving  sufficient  pecuniary  sup- 
port from  this  mission,  was  compelled  to  abandon  it 
about  the  first  of  June,  1857.  On  the  2d  of  June  he 
started  upon  a  tour,  visiting  and  lecturing  in  a  large 
number  of  towns  on  Long  Island,  after  the  termination 
of  which  he  went  to  New  Hampshire  and  Vermont. 
He  thus  writes  from  Windsor,  under  date  of  September 
16,1857:  — 

*  *  *  I  commenced  my  very  pleasant  tour,  lecturing 
among  the  granite  hills  of  New  Hampshire  and  the  green  moun- 
tains of  Vermont,  on  the  30th  of  August  last.  I  have  since 
that  time,  including  my  lecture  last  evening,  spoken  twenty 
times,  averaging  more  than  once  a  day ;  my  health  is  good, 
never  better.  *  *  *  I  wish  you  all  to  drink  to  my  health 
a  glass  of  good,  pure,  cold  water,  on  Monday  morninp,  Septem- 
ber the  28th ;  that  is  my  birthday,  when,  if  I  should  live,  1 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

shall  be  sixty  years  of  age.  Drink  it  about  six  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  as  that  was  about  the  hour  I  came  into  this  world  oe 
trial.  I  am  to  speak  at  the  following  places. 

Here  follows  a  list  of  appointments  terminating  in 
the  early  part  of  October.  We  close  this  chapter  with 
the  following  brief  and  sportive  note  :  - 

BOSTON,  October  3d,  1857. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  — I  wrote  you  a  very  short  letter  yesterday, 
in  a  very  short  time,  and  on  a  very  short  piece  of  paper,  saying 
that  in  a  short  time,  your  mother  and  I  would  be  on  our  way  to 
Baltimore,  to  pay  you  a  short  visit.  Your  mother  thinks  I 
gave  her  too  short  a  time  for  her  stay  in  New  York  and  Phil- 
adelphia. Therefore,  instead  of  meeting  us  at  Gap  Station  on 
Wednesday,  meet  us  on  Thursday  morning,  Oct.  8. 
In  short,  yours,  most  affectionately, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

"  In  all  my  wanderings  round  this  world  of  care, 
In  all  my  griefs — and  God  has  given  my  share  — 
I  still  had  hopes  my  latest  hours  to  crown, 
Amidst  these  humble  bowers  to  lay  me  down ; 
To  husband  out  life's  taper  at  the  close, 
And  keep  the  flame  from  wasting  by  repose  : 
Around  my  fire  an  evening  group  to  draw, 
And  tell  of  all  I  felt,  and  all  I  saw ; 
And  as  a  hare,  whom  hounds  and  horns  pursue, 
Pants  to  the  place  from  whence  at  first  she  flew, 
I  still  had  hopes,  my  long  vexations  past, 
Here  to  return  —  and  die  at  home  at  last." 

MR.  HAWKINS  had  now  passed  his  sixtieth  year,  yet 
his  labors  continued  unabated.  For  several  years  he 
kept  a  memorandum  of  the  number  of  miles  he  trav- 
elled ;  up  to  August,  1842,  it  amounted  to  thirteen 
thousand  one  hundred  and  eighty-four,  for  a  period  of 
less  than  eighteen  months  preceding.  This  however, 
was  not  the  most  active  part  of  his  life.  As  the  re- 
form progressed  the  field  of  his  labors  widened,  until 
it  included  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union,  and  all  the 
Canadian  provinces.  The  number  of  miles  which  he 
travelled  at  that  time  may  be  safely  estimated  at  ten 
thousand  annually,  or  about  two  hundred  thousand  in 
the  last  eighteen  years  of  his  life.  The  number  of  his 
public  addresses,  as  recorded  in  his  journal,  was  more 
than  three  hundred  yearly,  or  about  five  thousand  four 
hundred  in  all,  between  the  time  when  he  commenced 
his  labors  in  1841,  and  the  time  of  his  decease ;  and  in 

(404) 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS,  405 

that  time  he  must  have  addressed  at  least  a  million 
and  a  half  of  people ;  and  this  is  estimating  his  audi- 
ences at  three  hundred  only ;  on  great  occasions,  as 
upon  public  celebrations,  anniversaries,  and  conven- 
tions, he  often  spoke  to  thousands  at  one  time.  The 
In.st  six  months  of  his  life  manifested  no  abatement  of 
zeal ;  it  rather  became  intensified  as  he  drew  nearer  to 
1  IK",  end  of  his  race. 

A  few  days  before  concluding  his  labors  in  New 
Hampshire,  as  recorded  in  the  last  chapter,  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins wrote  Ihus  to  his  mother,  on  his  sixtieth  birthday, 
from  Concord :  — 

Never,  dear  mother,  did  the  sun  rise  in  more  beauty  and 
splendor,  than  on  this  morning,  the  twenty-eighth  day  of  Sep- 
tember [1857].  This  day,  sixty  years  ago,  you  bore  me  into 
this  world  of  sorrow  and  of  joy.  How  signally  has  our  heav- 
enly Father  blessed  you  and  yours;  not  one  of  your  own 
children  has  he  removed  from  you  by  death  for  fifty-five  years. 
Taking  every  thing  into  consideration,  all  your  children  have 
proved  a  blessing  to  you.  *  *  *  God  has  been  pleased  to 
spare  your  life  to  a  vigorous  old  age,  and  I  hope  that  you  are  to 
be  spared  to  us  for  some  time  to  come.  May  God  in  his  in- 
finite mercy  not  allow  one  to  be  lost,  but  gather  us  all  into  his 
kingdom. 

After  a  brief  visit  to  Baltimore,  Mr.  Hawkins  re- 
turned to  Concord,  N.  H.,  and  completed  his  engage- 
ments in  that  State.  From  November  1st  to  Decem- 
ber 7th,  he  visited  and  lectured  in  thirty-six  towns,  to 
good  audiences.  His  Christmas  was  spent  in  Balti- 
more, in  the  society  of  his  mother  and  relatives. 

In  the  latter  part  of  December,  Mr.  Hawkins  received 
an  invitation  to  spend  ten  days  in  Charle«town,  Mass. 


406  LIFE    OF   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

There  had  been  an  increase  of  drunkenness  in  that  city, 
and  some  of  the  ministers  located  there  had  resolved  to 
make  an  effort  to  stay  the  progress  of  the  evil.  Not- 
withstanding the  inclemency  of  the  winter  he  accepted 
the  invitation,  and  his  labors  were  most  signally  blessed. 
We  subjoin  in  a  note  an  extract  from  a  letter  addressed 
to  the  compiler  of  this  memoir  by  the  Rev.  O.  C.  Ev- 
erett, giving  an  exceedingly  interesting  account  of  what 
was  done,  and  the  result.* 

*  CHAELESTOWN,  Oct.  24, 1858. 

W.  G.  HAWKINS  :  Rev.  and  Dear  Sir,  — *  *  *  He  fMr.  H.]  com- 
menced on  Sunday  evening,  Jan.  3,  in  the  First  Methodist  Church,  and 
the  meeting  proved  exceedingly  interesting.  The  ball  was  now  set  in 
motion.  He  lectured  two  or  three  times  in  that  week,  besides  addressing 
the  children  one  afternoon.  He  visited  some,  but  was  prevented  by  the 
severity  of  the  weather,  and  by  a  serious  hoarse  cold,  from  going  ahum 
as  much  as  he  designed.  I  remember,  at  the  close  of  his  first  lecture,  nee- 
ing  a  young  man  come  up  to  the  platform  and  enter  into  conversation 
with  your  father  in  a  very  earnest  manner.  Afterwards  I  learned  that  the 
young  man  was  asking  his  advice  and  assistance,  how  to  rind  and  reclaim 
a  beloved,  but  fallen  brother.  That  brother  was  found  by  your  father  at 
the  "  Home  for  the  Fallen,"  and  restored  to  those  who  loved  him,  and  be- 
came, the  next  week,  the  first  President  of  the  "  Bunker  Hill  Total  Ab- 
stinence Society."  Such  was  the  first  fruit,  we  may  say,  of  your  father's 
labor  in  this  place. 

These  meetings,  appointed  in  different  sections  of  our  city,  were  fully 
attended,  and  a  general  awakening  of  new  interest  was  manifest.  On  the 
following  Sunday  evening,  he  lectured  in  the  Baptist  Church,  and  there 
was  a  perfect  jam ;  every  nook  and  corner  was  filled.  These  lectures 
were  designed  to  prepare  the  way  for  an  organization  which  might  be  ef- 
fectual. The  next  meeting,  on  Monday,  was  appointed  at  the  City  Hall, 
where  your  father  introduced  Mr.  S.  C.  Knights,  who  was  then  president  of 
a  very  active  and  successful  society  lately  established  in  Cambridgeport. 
Both  advocated  the  formation  of  a  new  society  in  this  city,  which  should 
embrace  the  young  men,  and  those  especially  who  had  been  reclaimed. 
Another  meeting  was  appointed  on  the  next  evening  in  the  same  place, 
and  your  father  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  a  new  organization  com- 
plete, with  pledge,  constitution,  and  officers  ;  and  at  its  head,  one  whom 
he  had  been  instrumental,  under  Providence,  of  placing  in  this  prominent 
place,  a  leader  of  the  new  movement.  From  that  evening  to  this,  the 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  407 

In  the  early  part  of  January,  1858,   Mr.   Hawkins 

society  has  maintained  regular  meetings,  which  have  kept  alive  the  inter- 
est your  father  awakened,  and  saved  many  from  going  down  to  a  drunk- 
ard's grave. 

It  was  about  the  tirst  of  May  that  your  father  and  mother  and  sister 
visited  our  city,  and  were  present  at  the  dedication  of  a  new  hall  devoted 
to  temperance,  and  named,  in  honor  of  your  father,  "  Hawkins  Hall." 
It  was  a  very  interesting  occasion;  many  expressed  their  gratitude  to 
him  for  the  impulse  he  had  given  to  the  cause  of  temperance  in  this  city, 
and  for  the  salvation  he  had  brought  to  them  and  their  families.  This 
hall  is  open  every  evening,  where  the  members  meet  for  social  converse, 
or  to  listen  to  addresses  and  remarks  made  by  visitors,  or  by  reformed 
men. 

Your  father's  influence  is  not  to  be  measured  by  the  first  ripple  pro- 
duced by  his  solid  words  in  a  stagnant,  indifferent  community ;  for  the  circle 
widened  and  continues  to  widen  yet.  Many  of  those  first  interested  became 
members  of  several  Divisions  of  Sons  of  Temperance  in  this  city  and  in 
Boston.  Some  commenced  a  new  Division  at  the  north  part  of  Boston, 
which  has  always  been  regarded  as  the  hardest  portion  of  that  favored  city, 
and  were  so  blessed  in  their  labors,  that  after  seeing  this  new  organization 
well  established,  they  resolved  to  return  to  their  own  city,  and  commence 
another  Division  of  the  Sons  of  Temperance.  Thus,  you  see,  the  ball 
continues  to  roll,  and  new  places  are  blessed  by  the  zeal  and  activity 
which  your  father's  words  first  excited.  There  has  not  been  in  our  city, 
since  I  took  up  my  abode  here,  such  interest  in  the  cause  of  temperance 
as  at  the  present  time.  There  is  no  great  excitement,  no  violent  commo- 
tion, no  loud  demonstration,  not  much  public  notice,  but  a  quiet,  silent 
energetic  influence,  which  is  gradually  making  itself  felt  in  our  commun- 
ity- 

In  conclusion,  I  would  say,  that  this  evening  (30th),  I  dropped  in  upon 
the  society  in  "  Hawkins  Hall,"  and  there  heard  the  President  warmly 
advocating  a  new  measure,  whereby  the  blessings  of  temperance  might  be1 
carried  to  the  extreme  parts  of  our  city,  and  urging  upon  his  associates 
new  activity  and  preparation  for  this  winter's  work.  The  ball  is  rolling 
—  the  cause  is  living  and  active ;  and  thanks  to  God,  that  he  sent  to  us 
t  ho  wise,  earnest,  living  voice  of  your  revered  and  honored  father.  Long 
may  his  labors  be  gratefully  remembered. 

Yours  truly,  in  Christian  fellowship, 

OLIVER  C.  EVERETT. 

HAWKINS   HALL.  —  The  following  brief  but  interesting  account  of 


408  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

completed  his  arrangement  with  the  executive  commi+ 

Mr.  Hawkins'  reception  at  City  Hall,  referred  to  in  the  foregoing  letter, 
has  been  kindly  furnished  by  a  friend  :  — 

"  The  occasion  of  the  public  reception  of  Mr.  Hawkins  at  Charlestown, 
on  Tuesday  evening,  May  llth,  was  a  most  interesting  one.  The 
audience  present  was  large.  At  seven  o'clock,  the  chair  was  taken  by  T. 
M.  Brown,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Bunker  Hill  Total  Abstinence  Society, 
who  made  some  appropriate  welcoming  remarks,  at  the  opening  of  the 
meeting,  and  then  proceeded  to  read  select  portions  of  Scripture.  He 
then  invited  Rev.  J.  S.  Cushman  to  offer  prayer,  which  was  done  in  a 
very  fervent  and  appropriate  manner.  A  temperance  ode  was  then  sung, 
after  which  Mr.  Hawkins  was  introduced,  and  greeted  with  applause.  He 
appeared  somewhat  unwell,  having  just  returned  from  a  long  and  very 
arduous,  yet  most  successful,  temperance  tour  in  Vermont.  As  he  rose 
to  speak,  traces  of  excessive  fatigue  were  observable,  but  as  he  proceeded, 
his  soul  all  on  fire  with  the  grandeur  of  his  theme,  the  physical  man  be- 
came endued  with  more  than  usual  power.  His  speech  was  a  most  affect- 
ing one ;  — rarely  has  he  been  more  touching  and  effective  in  his  appeal 
for  that  cause  in  behalf  of  which  he  had  so  long  labored. 

"  At  the  conclusion  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  speech,  S.  B.  Weston,  Esq.,  edi- 
tor of  the  Boston  Temperance  Visitor,  was  introduced.  He  alluded  at  first 
to  the  happy  circumstances  attending  this  public  reception  of  Mr.  Hawk- 
ins, and  then  passed  to  a  notice  of  the  gratifying  results  of  his  long  and 
faithful  devotion  to  the  temperance  enterprise. 

"  At  the  conclusion  of  these  exercises  at  the  City  Hall,  the  audience 
adjourned  to  the  hall  of  the  Bunker  Hill  Society,  which  has  been  named, 
in  honor  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  "  Hawkins  Hall."  The  hall  was  filled  to  its 
utmost  capacity.  Refreshments  were  provided  and  partaken  of,  after 
which  speeches  were  made  by  Rev.  Messrs.  Cushman  and  Everett,  of 
Charlestown,  Mr.  Brown,  Mr.  Hawkins,  and  others.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Hawkins  were  accompanied  by  their  '  daughter  Hannah,'  who  received 
many  kindly  notices  of  regard.  The  following  lines  were  sung,  prepared 
for  the  occasion  by  the  president  of  the  society :  — 

"  Welcome  the  true  and  tried 

Old  Washingtonian ; 
We  greet  him  now  with  pride,  — 

He's  welcome  here  again; 
While  hearts  made  glad  by  temperance  power, 
Rejoice  in  this  delightful  hour. 

i;  And  may  his  lamp  of  life 
Long  shed  its  cheering  ray ; 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

tee  of  the  Vermont  State  Temperance  Society,  to  can- 
vass that  State  and  lecture  on  the  subject  of  prohibi- 
tion. Several  months  were  to  elapse  before  the  election 
was  to  take  place,  and  it  was  believed  that  the  oppo- 
nents of  the  existing  law  would  exert  themselves  to 
the  utmost  of  their  power  to  secure  its  modification, 
or,  if  possible,  its  repeal.  As  the  canvass  went  on,  and 
the  battle  waxed  hotter  and  hotter,  the  temperance 
host  were  led  to  look  to  Mr.  Hawkins  as  the  most  effec- 
tive champion  who  could  be  brought  into  the  field  to 
stem  the  mighty  torrent  of  opposition. 

"  We  are  glad,"  writes  the  Secretary  of  the  Execu- 
tive Committee,  "  that  you  have  consented  to  come  to 
Vermont.  Our  State  Temperance  Convention  meets 
at  Northfield  on  the  19th  of  January,  and  we  want  you 
to  lecture  on  Monday  evening.  During  the  meeting 
we  shall  want  your  services.  This  will  be  a  good  op- 
portunity to  introduce  you  to  the  State,  and  to  arrange 
matters  for  your  winter's  work.  Do  not  fail  to  be 
there." 

"We  find  by  Mr.  Hawkins'  journal  that  he  com- 
menced his  labors  in  Vermont,  at  Bethel,  on  the  10th 
of  -January,  1858,  and  continued  them  to  April  19th  ; 
during  this  time  he  addressed  the  public  on  ninety- 
three  occasions,  and  obtained  over  fourteen  hundred 
signatures  to  the  pledge. 

No  sorrow,  care,  nor  strife, 
Hcrlon-l  his  waning  day; 
And  when  his  closing  hour  shall  come, 
Muy  ungcls  bear  him  swiftly  home. 

x 

"  At  quite  ji  hitc  hour  the  company  separated,  pleased  with  the  enter 
tainment,  and  <ri!l(]  ,,f  t|u,  opportunity  of  paying  their  respects  to  one 
whom  they  loved  for  his  faithful  devotion  to  the  great  principles  of  tem- 
perance." 


410  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

On  the  22d  of  January  he  wrote  to  his  daughter  frorr 
Royalston,  saying :  — 

We  have  had  no  very  cold  weather  until  to-day,  which  is 
very  cold.  I  am  prepared,  however,  for  a  "Polar  winter." 
My  health  was  never  better.  *  *  *  The  State  Conven- 
tion at  Northfield"  have  unanimously  endorsed  my  coming  into 
the  State,  &c.  They  make  my  appointments,  and  I  have  noth- 
ing to  do  but  to  fill  them. 

We  have  not  space  to  insert  the  many  earnest 
letters  received  from  various  parts  of  the  State,  solic- 
iting special  addresses,  in  addition  to  the  work  laid 
out  by  the  committee,  and  complimenting  him  upon 
the  success  of  his  labors. 

April  9th  he  writes  to  his  children  from  R-utland, 
spying :  — 

I  have  been  unable  to  write  you  sooner,  I  have  been  so  much 
driven  in  my  work  lately.  I  have  spoken  one  hundred  and 
seven  times  in  succession,  without  one  night's  rest,  and  feel 
much  worn  down  ;  I  am  getting  old  and  cannot  stand  as  much 
as  I  formerly  could,  yet  my  health  was  never  better.  I  have 
now  thirteen  appointments  to  fill,  ending  on  the  twenty-first  of 
this  month,  and  on  the  following  day  I  hope  to  be  with  you. 

Finding  himself  greatly  exhausted  by  these  exces- 
sive labors,  he  took  a  rest  of  several  weeks  in  ApriJ 
and  May.  He  went  to  Baltimore,  and  finding  his  wife 
still  in  feeble  health,  he  brought  her  to  Massachusetts. 
On  reaching  New  York,  May  3d,  he  wrote  as  follows 
to  his  son,  then  Rector  of  St.  John's  Church,  Pequea, 
Lancaster  Co.,  Pa. :  — 

I  spent  (he  winter  in  Vermont  as  you  know,  and  now  am 
about  to  return  to  finish  my  labors  in  that  State.  I  canvassed 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKIN&.  411 

the  following  counties ;  viz.,  Orange,  Washington,  Chittenden, 
Franklin,  Lamoille,  Addison,  Rutland,  and  Bennington.  I 
now  have  the  following  to  go  through ;  viz.,  Windham,  Wind- 
sor, Caledonia,  Orleans,  Essex,  and  Grand  Isle,  which  will 
take  me  the  greater  part  of  the  summer. 

He  reentered  upon  his  labors,  according  to  his  inten- 
tion, on  the  18th  of  May,  and  continued  them  without 
a  single  day's  intermission,  until  the  3d  of  June,  when 
literally  broken  down  by  excessive  toil,  he  was  com- 
pelled to  relinquish  any  further  labor.  On  reaching 
Boston  he  was  taken  sick,  and  confined  to  the  house 
for  several  days. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  month,  his  son  received 
from  him  the  following  letter:  — 

BOSTON,  June  28,  1858. 

MY  DEAR  SON,  —  I  have  just  returned  from  Vermont,  and 
have  completed  my  labors  for  the  present.  My  health  is  as 
usual,  but  somewhat  worn  down  from  constant  labor.  I  have 
made  up  my  mind  not  to  lecture  much,  if  any,  during  the  sum- 
mer months.  I  am  getting  advanced  in  years,  and  cannot 
stand  the  labor  I  once  could.  Now  for  it! 

It  is  my  intention,  with  your  mother  and  sister  Hannah,  to 
leave  here  soon  after  the  4th  of  July,  for  "  Pequea  Valley." 
I  wish  you  to  meet  us  at  Parksburg  on  the  5th ;  we  shall  have 
considerable  luggage,  so  you  will  have  to  bring  a  whole  team. 
What  I  omit  in  writing  in  this  letter,  we  will  make  up  in  talk- 
ing, if  dear  N —  —  will  but  give  us  a  chance. 

Great  preparation  was  made  at  the  parsonage  for 
the  reception  and  comfort  of  both  himself  and  his  wife, 
who  was  then  in  very  feeble  health.  On  his  arrival  at 
Parksbtirgh,  IK-  was  mot  by  his  son  and  conveyed  1<> 
his  home  some  live  miles  distant,  over  a  delightful 


412  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

road,  and  through  a  scene  of  rural   beauty,   not  sur- 
passed by  any  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania. 

How  Mr.  Hawkins  enjoyed  himself  at  Pequea  will 
be  learned,  in  part,  from  extracts  from  his  letters.  To 
a  niece  in  Baltimore  he  wrote  on  the  14th  of  July,  — 

Your  aunt  lias  been  quite  ill  but  is  now  sitting  up.  We 
have,  at  the  present  time,  the  following  visitors  from  Baltimore : 
Sister  Ann  Hawkins,  Miss  Fannie  Martin,  Isabella  and  Eliza- 
beth Courtenay  ;  quite  a  house  full,  but  there  is  room  for  more. 
We  have  every  thing  here  that  heart  could  wish  for.  *  *  * 
We  have  the  greatest  abundance  of  black  and  red  cherries, 
raspberries,  &c.  *  *  *  It  will  be  greatly  to  the  advantage 
of  your  aunt  to  spend  the  whole  summer  here.  I  do  not  in- 
tend to  lectui^e  any  until  the  last  of  October.  *  *  *  This 
is  indeed  the  most  lovely  country  I  have  seen  in  all  my 
travels.  William  George  and  myself  talk  of  driving  to  Port 
Deposit,  which  is  only  thirty  miles  distant,  and  proceed  from 
thence  to  Baltimore,  in  the  cars. 

How  he  employed  himself,  in  part,  may  be  learned 
from  the  following,  the  last  letter  he  ever  wrote  to  his 

mother :  — 

PEQUEA,  July  29,  1858. 

My  DEAR  AND  MUCH-BELOVED  MOTHER,  —  I  suppose 
the  girls  are  enjoying  themselves  so  much  here,  that  they  have 
not  found  time  to  drop  a  single  line  to  you  since  coming  into 
this  delightful  valley.  This,  of  course,  you  know,  is  not  from 
any  want  of  affection,  for  no  mother  or  grandmother  could  be 
more  loved  than  you  are.  Dear  mother,  could  you  only  be 
here  wilh  us,  although  we  are  all  happy,  how  much  greatei 
would  be  our  joy  ?  We  had  a  grand  "  Festival  and  Picnic ' 
yesterday  in  a  beautiful  grove  near  by.  I  made  a  speech  tc 
them  upon  temperance,  at  which  all  seemed  pleased.  M) 
wife's  health  has  improved  somewhat,  and  she  was  able  to  rid« 
fo  the  grove,  and  enjoyed  herself  much ;  and  so  did  all  the 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  413 

"  visitors."  I  never  in  my  life  was  spending  a  more  agreeable 
time.  I  employ  myself  in  the  following  manner ;  viz.,  I  mend 
fences,  garden  a  little,  and  look  after  sundry  broods  of  chickens  ; 
but  my  most  useful  employment  has  been  to  paint  and  varnish 
two  carriages  for  William  George.  I  think  I  made  a  pretty 
good  job  of  it  too. 

The  party  of  visitors  leave   here  on   Monday,  and  you  may 
expect   us  down   on  Tuesday ;  one  object  is  to  get  some  good 
fishing,  of  which  sport  you  know  I  am  a  little  fond.      * 
Your  son,  most  affectionately, 

JOHN  H.  W.  HAWKINS. 

Mr.  Hawkins  went  to  Baltimore,  and  after  a  very 
delightful  visit  to  his  mother  and  other  relatives,  re- 
turned to  Pequea.  His  health  was  apparently  improv- 
ing, and  there  was  no  indication  of  the  approach  of 
the  sad  event,  the  details  of  which  are  briefly  narrated 
in  the  following  communication  from  the  writer  of  these 
pages  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Tyng,  one  of  the  editors  of  the 
Protestant  Churchman,  in  which  it  was  published,  with 
the  following  introductory  remarks  :  — 

The  death  of  this  faithful  man  is  a  great  public  loss.  Often 
have  we  read  of  his  earnest  and  self-sacrificing  career  in  the 
cause  of  temperance.  Often  have  we  met  him  in  the  course  of 
his  career  with  respect  and  delight.  He  served  his  divine 
Master  faithfully,  and  he  loved  his  fellow-men  sincerely.  No 
labors  were  too  arduous,  and  no  toils  refused  to  rescue  the  vic- 
tims of  intemperance  from  ruin,  and  bring  them  as  trophies  to 
a  Saviour's  feet.  We  give  below  a  very  affectionate  privale 
letter  from  his  son,  the  Rev.  William  G.  Hawkins,  at  W!IOM: 
house  he  died. 

"  BOSTON,  Sept.  15,  1858. 

"RKV.  S.  II.  TYNG,  D.D. :  Dear  />W/,rr,  —  My  dear 
father  closed  his  earthly  career,  very  suddenly,  at  my  residence, 

35* 


414  LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

in  Pequea,  Pa.,  on  Thursday,  the  26th  of  August.  At  his 
death  he  was  sixty  years,  ten  months,  and  twenty-eight  days 
old.  He  came  from  his  recent  tour  of  lecturing  in  the  State  of 
Vermont,  with  a  constitution  much  shattered  by  excessive  la- 
bors ;  he  was  quite  ill  on  reaching  Boston,  but  soon,  to  all  ap 
pearance,  regained  his  usual  vigor  and  robustness.  In  the 
spring  lie  had  intended  continuing  his  labors  until  September, 
but  in  June  wrote  to  me  stating  his  indisposition,  that  he  had 
reached  an  age  when  he  found  it  impossible  to  endure  the  fa- 
tigue of  body  he  once  could.  He  announced  his  determination 
to  spend  the  summer  months  at  Pequea,  and  enjoy,  in  our  beau- 
tiful retreat,  the  society  of  his  family.  He  came  with  my 
mother  on  the  first  of  July ;  the  visit  was  a  most  happy  one, 
meeting  as  he  did  a  large  number  of  his  near  relatives  from 
Baltimore,  of  whose  coming  he  had  had  no  previous  intimation. 
How  much  we  all  enjoyed  his  religious  society,  and  how  beau- 
tifully his  Christian  life  seemed  to  shine  forth  towards  its  close ! 
How  lovingly  his  heart  went  out  in  prayer  at  our  daily  family 
altar  for  all  his  relatives,  that  they  might  be  brought  into 
the  fold  of  Christ !  His  was  a  large  heart,  and  no  condition  of 
man  was  omitted  ;  he  prayed  for  all.  Never  will  his  nephews 
and  nieces  forget  his  tender  Christian  sympathies,  and  his  con- 
stant efforts  to  add  to  their  happiness,  during  their  visit  to  the 
country.  How  much  innocent  amusement  did  he  intersperse 
in  the  exercises  of  each  day ;  how  often  did  he  bring  to  them 
the  basket  of  delicious  cherries  which  his  own  hands  had 
plucked. 

"  It  was  three  weeks  on  Sabbath  last  that  he  addressed,  in  a 
most  tender  and  affectionate  manner,  the  children  of  my  Sab- 
bath school,  and  as  he  came  from  the  church  many  of  the  con- 
gregation said,  What  a  vigorous  and  healthy  old  gentleman 
your  father  is.  All  seemed  to  love  and  venerate  him.  Little 
did  they  think  that  they  should  see  him  no  more  on  earth.  On 
Tuesday,  the  24th  of  August,  he  complained  of  slight  indisposi- 
tion, for  the  first  time,  but  not  in  a  manner  to  cause  any  alarm. 


LIFE   OF  JOHN  H.    W.    HAWKINS.  415 

On  the  afternoon  of  that  day  we  took  the  cars  and  proceeded  to 
Philadelphia,  to  be  present  on  the  following  day  at   the  conse- 
cration of  Bishop  Bowman.     In  the  evening  he  made  known 
his  intention  to  go  in  search  of  a  poor  family  whom  he  had  be- 
friended a  year  previously,  as   he   said,  to  see  how  they  were 
getting  on>  promising  to  meet  me  at  the  church  in  the  morning 
It  eleven  o'clock.     Anticipating  a  crowd,  services  were  com- 
menced an  hour   sooner  than  the  time  announced ;  the  gates 
were  locked,  and  police  stationed  at  each  to  prevent  ingress  or 
egress.     I  had  no  opportunity,  therefore,  of  seeing  my  father, 
until  near  3  P.M.,  at  the  railroad  station.     Never  shall  I  forget 
the  change  in  his  features  ;  those  sunken  eyes,  that  pallid  face, 
and  that^»%  voice.     The  crisis  in  the  disease,  as  we  now  be- 
lieve, had  at  this  time  passed.     '  I  found,'  said  he,  <  that  poor 
family,  but  in  most  happy  circumstances,  and  they  prevailed  on 
me  to  spend  the  night  with  them.     I  did  so,  but,'  he  added,  « I 
have  had  an  awful  night.     I  have  been  ill  all  night.'     I  said, 
'  Father,  why  do  you  stand  here  ?  go  and  sit  down.'     '  Oh,'  said 
he, '  I  shall  be  better  soon.'     He  thought,  no  doubt,  by  his  pow- 
erful will  to  brave  it  off;  he  did  not  want  to  trouble  us  with  his 
sickness.     He  busied  himself  in  the  preparations  for  departure  ; 
he  said  little,  however,  in  the  ride  to  Gap  Station.     We  were 
met  there   in   the  carriage   by   Mrs.  II.  and  his   wife.     I  felt 
alarmed,  and  drove  on  as  hastily  as  possible.     He  checked  me, 
saying  there  was  no  necessity   for  driving  so   fast. ;    that    the 
evening  was  pleasant,  and  he  enjoyed  the  ride  much. 

"  He  found  supper  ready  on  reaching  the  parsonage,  but  he 
would  take  nothing  save  a  tumbler  of  boiled  milk  ;  he  had  al- 
ready taken  medicine  prescribed  in  Philadelphia,  and  he  hoped 
the  dysentery  under  \vhich  he  was  sum-ring  would  soon  be 
checked.  lie  retired  af  8  P.M.,  and  we  called  at  his  room  to 
sav  that  if  he.  was  any  worse  to  have  us  called.  He,  would  not 
allow  his  wife  to  arouse  us,  being  herself  feeble  in  health,  but 
at  one  in  the  morning  came  to  the  door  himself  and  called,  say- 
ing, in  a  very  calm  manner,  '  Go  for  the  doctor  immediately.' 


416  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

In  a  few  moments  he  was  seized  with  cramp  in  his  limbs 
from  his  knees  downward.  He  turned  to  my  sister,  his  daugh- 
ter Hannah,  and  said,  '  There  is  no  use  in  doing  any  thing ;  you 
cannot  help  me  now,  —  my  case  is  similar  to  your  husband's.' 
He  had  died  a  few  years  before  of  aggravated  dysentery,  being 
sick  only  a  few  hours.  The  doctor  was  soon  by  his  bedside,  but 
could  do  nothing  beyond  administering  opiates  and  slight  stim- 
ulants. At  ten  in  the  morning  (Thursday)  his  pulse  was  rap- 
idly declining.  I  aroused  him,  seeking  some  parting  words.  I 
said,  '  Are  you  in  any  pain  ? '  '  None  whatever.'  '  Are  you 
happy,  and  willing  to  depart  ? '  '  Perfectly'  I  asked  if  he  had 
any  words  to  leave  with  his  temperance  friends,  or  relatives. 
'  None.'  He  turned  to  his  wife  and  said, '  Farewell,'  and  grad- 
ually sank  away,  and  without  a  pain  passed  to  his  blessed  re- 
ward in  the  '  sanctuary  above.' 

Very  affectionately  yours,  W.  G.  H." 

How  the  news  of  his  decease  was  received  by  his 
relatives,  the  following  letter  will  disclose :  — 

(FROM  MRS.  SOHAEFFEK  TO  REV.  w.  G.  HAWKINS.) 

BALTIMORE,  Sept.  3d,  1858. 

MY  DEAR  WILLIAM,  —  Your  letter  dated  27th  ult.,  con- 
taining the  mournful  particulars  of  your  dear  father's  death  did 
not  reach  us  until  Monday,  September  1st.  We  had  been 
anxiously  looking  for  some  tidings,  and  had  imagined  a  thou- 
sand dreadful  things  ;  such  as  a  violent  death  by  railroad,  etc. 
Such  was  the  state  of  our  minds,  that  when  your  letter  reached 
us  it  was  a  great  relief.  Now  we  can  reflect  with  submission, 
and  even  with  joy,  that  he,  after  all  his  wanderings,  his  labors, 
his  exposures  to  death  in  every  form,  should  have  come  home 
to  his  own  son's  house  to  die  in  calmness  and  peace.  I  think 
with  you,  dear  William,  that  it  was  God's  time  ;  that  he  had 
no  further  need  for  his  services  on  earth,  and  called  him  up 
higher,  to  worship  before  his  throne  in  heaven,  where  I  have 


LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  417 

not  the  slightest  doubt  he  is  now  singing  the  "  song  of  Moses 
and  the  Lamb."  Oh,  I  hope  this  sudden  bereavement  may  be 
as  a  loud  call  to  every  one  of  us,  "  be  ye  also  ready,  for  in 
such  an  hour  as  ye  think  not  the  Son  of  man  cometh." 

This  unexpected  blow  has  nearly  crushed  your  dear  grand- 
mother. Although  she  sees  the  direct  hand  of  God  in  this 
dispensation,  her  love  was  strong,  her  affection  abiding,  such  as 
only  a  mother  ha*.  She  regrets  deeply  that  she  has  seen  so 
little  of  him  lately.  But,  she  says,  it  will  not  be  long  before 
she  shall  meet  him  where  parting  is  unknown.  *  *  *  Mr. 
Courtenay  called  to  see  Christian  Keener  yesterday,  and  read 
your  letter  to  him ;  he  wishes  to  notice  your  father's  death  in 
the  temperance  paper.  *  *  *  Is  it  not  a  mysterious  prov- 
idence, that  mother  having  lost  three  children,  should  not  have 
had  the  privilege  of  attending  either  of  them  in  their  dying 
hours  ?  *  *  * 

The  news  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  sudden  death  called 
forth  from  the  public  press  a  very  general  expression 
of  admiration  of  his  services,  and  of  the  great  loss 
the  cause  of  temperance  had  sustained.  Resolutions 
of  condolence  with  the  bereaved  family  were  received 
from  all  parts  of  the  country.  In  several  places  the 
halls  of  temperance  were  hung  in  mourning  for  thirty 
days.  The  Massachusetts  State  Temperance  Conven- 
tion met  at  Boston,  September  14th,  1858,  at  which 
the  following  resolution  was  passed :  — 

Resolved,  That  we  cherish  profound  respect  for  the  memory 
of  our  late  esteemed  friend  and  fellow-worker,  John  II.  W. 
Hawkins,  whose  sudden  and  unexpected  demise  fills  us  with 
regret  for  the  loss  of  his  continued  labors  and  example.  We 
recognize  in  him  the  truly  religious  spirit,  the  noble  self-con- 
queror, the  earnest,  generous  friend  of  the  inebriate,  the  con- 
t,  devoted  advocate  of  the  temperance  reform  in  all  its 


418  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

stages  of  development,  and  the  kind,  sympathizing  brother 
ready  to  aid  by  voice  and  act  every  form  of  suffering  human- 
ity. We  twine  garlands  for  the  victors  in  the  field  of  blood ; 
has  not  the  day  come  to  crown  these  more  than  martial  con- 
querors —  the  moral  heroes  in  life's  great  battle,  achieving 
nobler  conquests  over  vice  and  sin  ?  In  that  starry  roll  of 
"  names  that  were  not  born  to  die,"  we  enshrine  the  name  of 
John  H.  W.  Hawkins,  as  that  of  a  pioneer  hero  in  the  glorious 
Washingtonian  reform,  employing  for  the  human  brotherhood 
his  best  energies,  with  a  brave  and  true  heart,  amid  number- 
less discouragements,  down  to  the  lamented  close  of  his  honor- 
able career. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Beaman,  of  Salem,  addressed  the 
Convention  in  the  following  language  :  — 

Permit  me  to  occupy  a  few  moments  before  the  passage  of 
this  resolution,  to  express  my  hearty  concurrence  in  this  trib- 
ute to  Mr.  Hawkins.  I  am  very  glad  that  it  is  brought  for- 
ward, and  that  the  language  is  so  expressive  of  the  merits  of 
our  departed  friend  and  fellow-laborer  in  the  cause  of  temper- 
ance. 

Those  of  us  who  remember  the  early  days  of  the  Washing- 
tonian  movement,  bear  in  mind  the  very  great  enthusiasm 
awakened  in  the  country  by  the  soul-stirring  addresses  of  Mr. 
Hawkins.  No  name  stood  higher  at  that  time  as  a  temperance 
lecturer,  or  drew  together  larger  audiences.  Wherever  he 
went,  success  greeted  him,  and  the  reformations  effected 
through  his  agency  were  truly  wonderful.  From  that  time 
until  the  day  of  his  death,  a  few  weeks  ago,  he  continued  to 
labor  in  the  cause  amid  many  discouragements,  but  keeping  up 
his  courage  and  hopefulness  in  the  most  desponding  periods. 
Often  straitened  in  his  means,  for.  as  he  once  told  me,  he  never 
knew  but  one  regular  temperance  lecturer  to  make  money  by 
the  business,  he  persevered  in  going  from  place  to  place,  ani- 
mating the  desponding  and  arousing  the  attention  of  the  apa- 
thetic. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN    IT.    W.    HAWKINS.  419 

He  has  now  closed  his  toils,  dying,  il  may  be  said,  in  com 
parative  obscurity;  but  not  so,  for  ang<-!s  marked  the  spot,  and 
the  world  will  take  knowledge  of  it.  Such  men  are  the  true 
heroes  of  life,  far  before  those  .of  the  tented  field,  battling  as 
they  do  for  the  best  interests  of  man  and  for  the  welfare  of  the 
church  and  the  world.  He  has  gone  from  earth  but  has  en- 
tered upon  his  rest  in  heaven. 

We  have  received  a  communication  from  William 
B.  Spooner,  Esq.,  of  Boston,  speaking  in  highly  com- 
plimentary terms  of  Mr.  Hawkins'  services ;  we  regret 
that  the  late  hour  at  which  it  was  received  prevents  its 
appearance  in  this  volume.  The  thrilling  meetings 
referred  to  by  Mr.  Spooner,  and  the  resolution  offered 
by  him  in  1841,  will  be  found  in  the  course  of  the  nar- 
rative. "  Ever  since,"  says  Mr.  S ,  "  the  first  even- 
ing at  which  he  spoke  in  Boston,  your  father  and 
myself  have  been  fast  friends.  He  possessed  those 
natural  traits  of  refinement,  delicacy,  sprightliness  and 
sincerity,  which  made  him  a  favorite  wherever  he  was 
acquainted.  He  has  frequently  told  ine  that  the  simple 
vote  which  I  presented  to  the  first  meeting  did  more 
to  give  him  encouragement  and  hope  to  go  on  with 
his  labors,  than  any  other  circumstance.  *  I 
am  glad  you  are  preparing  his  biography ;  I  think  it 
will  do  much  good,  and  is  due  to  the  memory  of  a 
truly  good  man  and  a  great  philanthropist  and  public 
benefactor." 

On  the  7th  of  November,  1858,  the  Parent  Wash- 
ington Temperance  Society  held  a  public  meeting 
in  Tremono  Temple.  We  subjoin  a  brief  account  of 
the  services  on  the  occasion,  extracted  from  the  Boston 
Temperance  Visitor,  edited  by  S.  B.  Weston  :  — 

On  Sunday  evening  last,  the  meeting  commemorative  of  the 


420  LIFE  OF  JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS. 

services  of  the  late  John  H,  W.  Hawkins,  was  held  at  Tre- 
mont  Temple.     Providence  seemed  to  have  kindly  regarded 
the  event,  as  in  the  early  part  of  the  day  the  storm  which 
had  prevailed  during  the  week  ceased,  and  the  sun  beamed 
forth  from  the  sky  above  most  gloriously.     The  muddy  streets 
of  our  city  were,  by  this  means,  rendered  passable,  very  com- 
fortably so.     At  a  very  early  hour,  large  crowds  might  have 
been  seen  wending  their  way  to  the  Temple.     Long  before  the 
time  for  the  services  to  commence,  that  spacious  edifice  was 
completely  filled.      Having  been   honored  by  the  chairman 
of  the  Committee  of  Arrangements,  William  R.  Stacy,  Esq., 
v/ith   a   complimentary   card   of    invitation,  ^  we   were    intro- 
duced with  others  upon  the  speaker's  platform.     As  we  sat 
there,  looking  about  over  the  large  audience,  we  were  struck 
with   the   magic   loveliness   of   the   picture   presented,  —  the 
mass  of  living  humanity,  closely  packed  in  the  slips  below, 
and  rising  in  amphitheatre  form  in  galleries,  on  either  side  of 
the  house,  —  and  we  could  not  help  thinking  that  the  people 
are  not  forgetful  or  unthankful  towards  those  who  have  spent 
their  life  and  strength  for  the  promotion  of  a  great  and  humane 
cause.     And  then  we  thought  that  we  should  like  to  know  the 
number  in  that  large  audience  who  have  been  directly  bene- 
fited by  the  work  of  Mr.  Hawkins.     Could  some  that  we  saw 
there  have  spoken  out  the  feelings  of  their  hearts,  how  would 
they  have  given  utterance  to  the  warmest  expressions  of  love 
and  admiration  for  the  memory  of  Mr.  Hawkins.    Could  many 
a  heart  throbbing  in  many  a  female  breast  present  have  given 
expression  to  its  emotions,  how  earnest  would  have  been  the 
thanksgiving  ascending  to  heaven,  for  sending  such  a  deliverer 
from  wretchedness  and  woe  as  Mr.  Hawkins.     And  then  there 
were  the  early  laborers  and  coadjutors  in  the  Washingtonian 
reform,  —  men  who   have   not  only  been   reformed   by  Mr. 
Hawkins'  labors,  but  have  cooperated  with  him,  —  who  have 
stayed  up  his  hands  and  cheered  his  heart,  as  he  has  been  toil- 
ing on  in  the  great  work  of  his  life.     There  were  Deacon 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.   HAWKINS.  421 

Grant,  Stephen  Fairbanks,  Esq.,  Moses  Mellen,  Esq.,  Henry 
Plympton,  Esq.,  Daniel  Kimball,  Peter  Thacher,  Esqs.,  Hum- 
phrey Chadbourne,  Esq.,  Jacob  Sleeper,  Esq.,  and  Jonathan 
Preston,  Esq.  Then  there  were  the  Presidents  of  the  several 
Washingtonian  Societies  in  this  city  and  vicinity :  William  R. 
Stacy,  Esq.,  of  the  Parent  Washingtonian  Society ;  Samuel  C. 
Knights,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Cambridgeport  Temperance 
Reform  Association ;  T.  M.  Brown,  Esq.,  President  of  the 
Charlestown  Temperance  Society;  B.  W.  Goodhue,  of  the 
Roxbury  Alliance,  and  several  of  the  members  and  Directors 
of  these  several  societies.  Rev.  Phineas  Stowe,  of  the  Bethel 
Society,  Rev.  Mr.  Denison,  of  the  Neptune  Temperance  So- 
ciety, S.  A.  B.  Bragg,  Esq.,  the  present  G.  W.  P.  of  the  Sons 
of  Temperance,  of  this  State,  Albert  Day,  Esq.,  Superintendent 
of  the  Home  for  the  Fallen,  William  Adams,  Jr.,  Agent  for  the 
Home,  and  other  firm  and  true  friends  of  temperance  were  there. 
The  exercises  commenced  by  an  anthem  from  the  choir. 
The  musical  direction  of  the  evening  was  entrusted  to  Mr. 
E.  H.  Frost,  and  was  most  admirably  executed.  The  Tre- 
mont  Musical  Association  performed  its  part  in  the  arrange- 
ments in  most  admirable  style,  and  the  greatest  credit  is  due 
them.  The  anthem,  and  the  original  hymn  prepared  for  the 
occasion,  were  all  sung  in  a  most  effective  manner.  Rev.  Con- 
verse L.  McCurdy,  of  this  city,  read  selections  from  Scripture, 
and  offered  prayer.  These  were  characterized  by  great  ap- 
propriateness and  solemnity.  The  following  original  hymn, 
wrilten  by  Hodges  Reed,  Esq.,  of  Taunton,  was  then  sung:  — 

There  are  crowns  in  the  hall  of  the  palace  on  high, 

Laid  u])  till  tho  end  of  the  days, 
For  those  who  turn  many  to  righteousness, 

From  their  dark  and  dangerous  ways. 

There's  a  crystal  stream  in  the  better  land, 

Which  (lows  from  the  great  white  throne, 
Where  the  darkest  stains  are  washed  away, 

When  the  labors  of  earth  are  done. 
3G 


422  LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

Our  brother  is  gone  for  his  crown  on  high, 

All  starred  with  the  rescued  ones  ; 
He  helped  them  to  dash  the  tempter's  cup, 

And  now  they  are  owned  as  sons. 

He  is  gone  up  to  drink  of  the  water  of  life, 

And  to  bathe  in  the  crystal  flood,  — 
He  rested,  while  here,  by  Cherith's  brook, 

But  there,  by  the  river  of  God. 

Oh,  come  !  mourn  his  loss,  ye  tempted  ones  5 

And  catch  the  mantle  he  wore ; 
For  he's  gone  to  his  rest,  and  his  trumpet  call, 

On  the  earth  shall  be  heard  no  more. 

The  address  of  Joseph  Story,  Esq.  followed.  What  shaiJ 
we  say  of  it  ?  If  classic  beauty  of  diction,  richness  of  illus- 
tration, and  attractiveness  of  delivery,  can  make  a  good  ad- 
dress, then  was  that  of  Mr.  Story  a  decided  success.  It  was 
attentively  listened  to  throughout,  and  was  evidently  appreci- 
ated by  those  who  heard  it.  The  speaker  did  not. seek  to  pre- 
sent any  thing  like  a  biographical  sketch  of  Mr.  Hawkins,  or  a 
statistical  view  of  the  results  of  the  labors  of  the  distinguished 
reformer,  but  to  draw  from  his  life  the  great  lessons  which  it 
is  calculated  to  enforce.  He  sought  to  catch  and  enforce  the 
inspiration  emanating  from  the  Great  Reformer,  and  to  make 
it  warm  and  animate  the  hearts  of  his  listeners. 

After  the  address,  the  following  original  ode,  written  by  the 
Rev.  Charles  W.  Denison  for  the  occasion,  was  sung :  — 

Mourn  we  now  the  gallant  dead  ? 

Weep  we  here  the  honored  brave  ? 
Freely,  then,  our  tears  we  shed, 

HAWKINS  fills  a  glorious  grave ! 

His  the  grave  a  hero  fills, 

Bravely  fallen  in  the  fray  ! 
On  the  everlasting  hills, 

Stands  his  victor-soul  to-day ! 


LIFE   OF    JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS.  423 

Streaming  from  his  starry  brow, 

Light  pours  on  our  battle-field  ; 
Hark  !  he  calleth  to  us  now  :  — 

" BROTHERS,  FIGHT !  —  BUT  NEVER  YIELD!" 

By  the  conflicts  HAWKINS  wrought, 

By  the  victories  he  won  ! 
Bravely  shall  our  field  be  fought, 

Till  the  fight  of  life  is  done  ! 

The  benediction  was  then  pronounced,  and  the  company  sep- 
arated. 

We  regret  that  the  limits  of  this  work  forbid  our 
giving  more  than  the  few  following  extracts  from  the 
admirable  address  of  Mr.  Story :  — 

Amid  the  various  and  engrossing  cares  of  business,  there 
has  been  but  little  time  to  make  a  careful  preparation  for  this 
occasion ;  and  perhaps  it  may  be  as  well  that  our  words  should 
not  be  too  studied  or  formal,  but  in  a  more  social  way  speak 
forth  the  promptings  of  the  heart.  Let  the  thoughts  of  this 
hour,  then,  be  our  heart-thoughts. 

But  why,  indeed,  should  I  speak  ?  What  need  of  words  ? 
This  which  meets  our  sight,  —  this  which  each  finds  kindling 
within,  is  more  eloquent  far  than  any  faltering  words  of  mine. 
Surely,  the  whole  scene  within  our  beautiful  Temple;  this 
great  multitude  of  warmly  beating  hearts,  is  in  "itself  a  gener- 
ous and  fitting  tribute  to  the  memory  of  our  absent  brother. 
Brother !  —  yes,  for  the  same  Being  is  father  over  us  all.  Ab- 
sent !  —  for  the  voyage  of  life  is  past,  the  bark  has  reached  its 
last  port,  and  the  voyager  stands  on  the  immortal  shore,  whence 
there  is  no  return. 

It  is  no  purpose  of  mine  to  deal  in  unseemly  adulation,  for 
we  come  not  hither  to  pay  homage  to  royal  birth  or  ephemeral 
fame,  but  rather  to  testify  our  appreciation  of  noble  purposes, 


424  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

faithful  labors,  and  kindly  deeds.  And  for  those  purposes, 
those  labors,  and  those  deeds,  thousands  of  hearts  made  happy 
have  embalmed  in  grateful  memories  the  name  of  JOHN 
HAWKINS. 

Let  us  in  spirit  tarry  for  awhile  in  that  distant  valley,  amid 
the  sturdy  oaks  whose  summer  shade  he  so  lately  enjoyed,  and 
by  the  side  of  that  spot  where  loving  hands  have  laid  him  ; 
around  which  even  at  this  hour  the  autumn  winds  are  twining 
chaplets  of  withered  leaves,  sad  memorials  of  frail  and  fading 
human  life.  With  these  sweet  sounds  passing  by  us  like  the 
music  of  Vesper  bells  on  the  evening  air,  let  us  contemplate 
the  character  of  our  brother,  and  the  genius  of  his  labors  ; 
and  while  paying  a  fitting  tribute  to  him,  have  our  hearts 
stimulated  to  every  noble  purpose  and  holy  work.  *  *  * 

Possessed  of  great  energy  of  character,  warm  and  tender 
sympathies,  and  a  natural  turn  of  eloquence,  soul-stirring  and 
earnest,  he  is  called  to  a  high  and  noble  mission,  enters  with  a 
whole  heart  on  the  work,  and  in  cooperation  with  his  fellow 
laborers  inaugurates  the  great  temperance  reformation  of  this 
generation. 

In  cities  and  towns,  all  through  the  Union,  the  people  are 
astonished,  and  throngs  gather  to  the  halls  wherever  this  un- 
pretending man  tells  of  the  gloom  of  the  past  and  the  joy  of 
the  present. 

There  was  a  mighty  influence  moving  through  the  land.  It 
was  not  like  $e  spectral  blazing  chariot  of  fire,  with  its  sweep- 
ing train  rushing  across  the  track  of  worlds,  coming  we  know 
not  whence,  and  flying  we  know  not  where,  startling  all  with 
wonder,  but  bringing  good  to  none  ;  but  it  was  rather  like  the 
falling  dews  of  evening,  and  the  gentle  light  of  morning,  cov- 
ering earth  with  beauty  and  gladness,  carrying  blessings  wher- 
ever it  went.  *  *  * 

I  shall  never  forget  when  this  new  pioneer  in  the  noble  work 
told  us,  in  our  own  Faneuil  Hall,  years  ago,  the  story  of  the 


LIFE    OF   JOHN    II.    W.    HAWKINS.  425 

drunkard's  life,  in  words  and  looks  that  burned  with  earnest 
truth,  the  tears  from  many  a  manly  eye  bearing  witness  to  the 
power  with  which  he  spoke. 

In  this  great  "Washingtonian  Reform  which  swept  so  rapidly 
through  the  land,  thousands  of  poor  degraded  men  were  saved, 
and  the  fact  demonstrated,  that  though  cast  down  and  nearly 
ruined,  and  though  every  light  and  hope  was  almost  extin- 
guished, yet  beneath  the  black  embers,  and  under-laying  the 
ashes  of  former  virtue  and  promise,  there  was  still  left  the 
vital  spark,  which  could  be  rekindled,  into  a  bright  flame. 
Shunned  and  neglected  by  others  on  the  one  hand,  losing  con- 
fidence and  respect  for  himself  on  the  other,  every  avenue  for 
his  escape  appeared  closed.  In  this  new  movement  it  was  as 
when  the  breath  passed  over  the  slain  in  the  valley,  and  the 
dry  bones  lived,  and  stood  up  on  their  feet,  an  exceeding 
great  army.  So  these  came  forth,  under  the  breath  of  the 
new  inspiration,  a  mighty  host,  armed  and  panoplied  for  the 
conflicts  of  life,  with  all  the  nobleness  of  their  manhood  again. 

To  this  work  of  love  Mr.  Hawkins  lent  his  whole  soul,  and 
stood  forth  the  leading  champion  of  the  service.  It  was  this 
new  principle,  by  deeds  of  love  and  words  of  tender  sympathy 
to  inspire  confidence  and  hope  in  the  fallen,  and  to  cheer  them 
on  in  manly  trial  —  it  was  this  principle  that  was  the  secret 
spring  to  that  amazing  success  which  crowned  his  efforts. 

The  power  of  intemperance  was  understood  and  preached 
as  never  done  before ;  and  the  inner  life  of  the  inebriate  was 
unfolded  in  a  new  light.  He  was  still  a  man,  the  immortal 
spark  not  quite  quenched,  —  a  wreck  fast  crumbling  to  decay 
but  not  quite  destroyed.  There  are  throbbings  there  of  a 
noble  heart,  crushed'  and  lacerated  though  he  may  be.  lie  is 
still  a  man ! 

"  Hie  huge  rough  stones  without  the  mines, 

I  riisi^hi!y  ami  unfair, 
Have  vein-  of   IIUIVM  marble  hid 
Beneath  the  roughness  there. 
36* 


426  LIFE   OP   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

"Few  rocks  so  bare  but  to  the  height 

Some  tiny  moss-plant  clings, 
And  round  the  crags  most  desolate, 
The  sea-bird  soars  and  sings. 

"Believe  me,  then,  that  rugged  souls 

Beneath  their  roughness  hide 
Much  that  is  soft  and  beautiful, 
They  have  their  angel's  side." 

He  is  an  actor  on  the  stage  of  life  behind  a  mask ;  playing 
anothev  part,  some  character  not  his  own.  That  trembling, 
staggering  body,  in  pains  of  "  palsy,  plague  and  fever  and 
madness  all  combined,"  that  is  not  the  man.  That  is  the  liv- 
ing embodiment  of  the  curse  of  intemperance,  stalking  in  hu- 
man form  ;  but  hidden  within  is  the  man,  bound  in  prison. 
Search  for  him  with  an  eye  of  pity ;  call  to  him  with  a  voice 
of  love,  and  perchance  you  may  give  him  strength  to  break 
the  bonds  and  shake  off  the  prison  fetters.  By  his  faithful 
labors  thousands  have  seen  that  look,  have  heard  that  cheering 
word  the  bright  one  spoke,  "  Strive  and  hope  for  better  days." 

Ofttimes  along  his  dreary  journey,  this  man  of  many  sor- 
rows has  sighed  for  the  former  days  of  happiness,  long  pa.-si-d 
away,  but  not  forgotten ;  in  the  hidden  chambers  of  his  soul, 
wished  he  might  become  the  child  of  innocence,  the  joyous  boy 
once  more.  Ah,  those  memories  !  floating  like  distant  music  to 
his  ear,  but  past,  —  all  past  and  gone  ! 

In  a  touching  tradition  connected  with  the  chime  of  bells  on 
the  Limerick  Cathedral,  it  is  said  they  were  made  for  a  con- 
vent in  Italy,  by  an  enthusiastic  native,  with  great  labor  and 
skill.  The  Italian,  having  afterwards  acquired  a  competency, 
fixed  his  house  near  the  convent  cliff,  and  for  many  years  en- 
joyed the  daily  chime  of  his  beloved  bells.  But  in  some  polit- 
ical convulsion  which  followed,  the  monks  were  driven  from 
the  monastery,  the  Italian  exiled  from  his  home,  and  the  bells 
were  carried  away  to  Ireland. 

After  a  long  interval,  the  course  of  his  wanderings  brought 


LIFE   OP   JOHN   II.    W.    HAWKINS.  427 

him  to  Limerick.  On  a  calm  and  beautiful  summer's  evening, 
as  the  vessel  which  hore  him  floated  along  the  broad  stream 
of  the  Shannon,  he  suddenly  heard  the  bells  (his  well-remem- 
bered bells)  peal  forth  from  the  Cathedral  Tower.  They  were 
the  long-lost  treasures  of  his  memory;  —  home,  happiness, 
friends,  —  all  early  recollections  were  in  their  sound.  Cross- 
ing his  arms  on  his  breast,  he  lay  back  in  the  boat.  When  the 
rowers  looked  round,  they  saw  his  face  still  turned  towards 
the  Cathedral,  but  his  eyes  were  closed  on  the  world. 

Many  of  these  wanderers  and  exiles  floating  on  the  stream 
of  time  have  often  had  awakened  early  recollections  of  home, 
happiness,  and  friends.  Yes,  often  have  they  suddenly  heard 
the  bells  pealing  forth  from  the  cathedral  towers  of  memory, 
and  have  seen  "  the  light  of  other  days "  flash  through  the 
gloom,  and  then  sank  down  to  melancholy  despair. 

Heaven  blessed  Mr.  Hawkins  in  his  unceasing  and  labori- 
ous toil  to  redeem  such  as  these ;  for  its  accomplishment,  all 
these  eighteen  years,  in  sacrificings  and  journeyings,  in  heat 
and  cold,  by  day  and  night,  in  storm  and  fair,  his  heai-t  has 
never  grown  cold,  his  hands  weary,  or  his  lips  silent.  Upon 
this  altar  was  laid  his  all,  —  time,  means,  and  strength.  My 
words  would  do  injustice  to  the  promptings  of  my  heart,  did  I 
not  pay  him  his  just  meed  of  praise. 

Who  cannot  bless  God  that  such  an  apostle  was  raised  up 
at  such  a  time,  to  carry  forward  so  glorious  a  work.  Bless 
God  that  lie  himself  was  lifted  up, — as  one  has  lately  said:  — 

"  To  rouse  the  sad  inebriate,  left  to  grope 
In  midnight  darkness  unrelieved  by  hope, 
And  bid  him,  with  one  last  strong  effort  burst 
The  bonds  that  bind  him  to  the  fiend  accurst, 
For  who  that  hoa'rs  how  Hawkins  was  triads  free, 
Can  henceforth  say,  '  There  is  no  hope  for  me'?  '  " 

Aye,  bless  God  for  this  example,  at  once  so  noble,  so  gen- 
erons,  of  one  who  lovi-d  his  fellow-turn.  Wherein  he  did  \\rll, 
iei  us  imitate  his  example,  remembering  that  we  live  in  a  we:ik 


428  LIFE   OP   JOHN    H.    W.    HAWKINS. 

and  erring  world,  —  that  no  m;ui  livoth  to  himself  alone.  The 
subtle  thread  of  sympathy  runs  through  every  heart,  binding 
the  whole  family  in  one.  Who  shall  wrest  it  from  its  secret 
hiding  place  ?  Who  shall  rob  its  pulses  of  their  fullest  cir- 
cuit? Corroding  riches  cannot  fill  its  place.  Wealth  or 
power  cannot  buy  it,  for  it  is  heaven  born.  God  plants  it  in 
the  inner  chamber  of  the  heart.  True  love,  —  true  charity, 
—  it  is  not  in  the  pile  of  gold  you  tender.  It  may  be  in  a 
simple  word,  a  look.  The  feeblest  deed,  the  offering  of  a 
kindly  heart,  is  more  of  love  divine  and  charity  than  all  the 
bags  of  mouldering  gold  in  yonder  vaults,  when  wrung  from 
sordid  hands.  "  Whoever  shall  give  to  drink  unto  one  of 
these  little  ones  a  cup  of  cold  water  only,  verily,  I  say  unto 
you,  he  shall  in  no  wise  lose  his  reward."  *  *  * 

It  is  noble  to  crown  our  lives  with  kindly  deeds.  It  is  ex- 
alting to  sow  blessings  around  our  pathway.  "  There  is  that 
scattered),  and  yet  increaseth ;  and  there  is  that  withholdeth 
more  than  is  meet,  but  it  tendeth  to  poverty."  Shall  we  not 
know  the  happy  experience  that  it  is  "  blessed  to  give,"  and  to 
do  ?  Would  we  drive  far  hence  a  multitude  of  ills  ?  Would 
we  open  unknown  avenues  of  joy,  and  lighten  many  a  weary 
care  or  burden  ?  Let  us  give  our  hearts,  our  hands,  our  lips, 
to  some  good  work  of  love,  and  live  for  others,  not  ourselves 
alone. 

"  Would'st  thou  from  sorrow  find  a  sweet  relief  ? 
Or  is  thy  heart  oppressed  with  woes  untold  ? 
Balm  would'st  thou  gather  for  corroding  grief? 
Pour  blessings  round  thee  like  a  shower  of  gold." 

I  have  not  deemed  it  needful  to  enter  into  a  detailed  narra- 
tive of  his  various  labors  from  place  to  place,  or  to  recount  all 
the  results  wrought  out  for  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  mul- 
titudes who  have  been  redeemed  through  his  untiring  efforts,  ot- 
to speak  of  the  great,  progiv.-o  inadr  in  the  general  cause  to  which 
he  was  so  strongly  attached  ;  that  labor  is  already  in  other  hands. 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  429 

But  I  content  myself  within  the  time  allotted  me  to  dwell  on 
the  spirit  and  principle  of  the  service  to  which  his  strength 
was  first  given,  of  the  remarkable  reformation  with  which  his 
name  is  inseparably  identified ;  which  have  been  and  shall  still 
be  the  bright  star  of  hope  to  many  crushed  and  broken  hearts. 
My  heart  and  thoughts  have  clustered  around  the  great  practi- 
cal truth  which  they  developed  ;  that  a  large  number  of  those 
who  seem  to  be  almost  hopelessly  degraded  by  intoxication, 
may  be  reclaimed  and  restored  to  society.  Yet  in  view  of  the 
strength  and  control  of  this  unnatural  appetite  over  its  victims 
and  slaves,  I  am  convinced  that  every  one  who  would  reform 
(and  it  is  often  a  fearful  conflict),  must  bring  into  exercise  the 
most  vital  energy  of  his  own  self-will,  and  needs  to  seek  refuge 
under  the  hallowed  influences  of  moral  and  religious  principle, 
and  above  all  to  lay  hold  on  the  help  of  Gcd,  ere  he  can  safely 
say,  "  I  am  forever  redeemed."  "  Let  him  that  thinketh  he 
standeth,  take  heed  lest  he  fall." 

Thus  have  my  words  been  chosen,  that  the  lessons  we  draw 
from  our  contemplation  on  this  occasion,  may  prompt  us  to 
those  noble  aspirations  and  holy  deeds,  which  can  make  us  each 
in  our  sphere  a  blessing  to  our  generation. 

It  was  appropriate  at  the  very  close  of  his  life,  that  among 
his  last  acts  of  love  should  be  a  visit  to  a  family  where  but  a 
year  before  he  had  bestowed  his  blessing.  It  was  a  bright  ray 
of  light,  gilding  the  sky  of  his  declining  day. 

Death  came  suddenly  upon  him,  and  on  the  26th  of  August, 
at  the  house  of  his  son,  in  the  midst  of  delightful  associations, 
surrounded  by  the  wife  and  kindred  he  loved,  he  bade  the  final 
"  farewell,"  and  like  a  shock  of  corn  fully  ripe  for  the  harvest, 
this  faithful  laborer,  this  Christian  soldier,  was  gathered  to  his 
rest.  He  has  gone  from  among  us,  and  who  buildeth  his  mon- 
ument? 

The  obelisks  and  pyramids  of  Egypt  are  among  the  grandest 
works  of  art  to  commemorate  the  deeds  of  her  kings,  but  their 
names  were  stained  with  blood  and  cruelty.  Wealth  and 


430  LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

power  can  rear  sculptured  marble  and  costly  statues  to  whom- 
soever they  will,  but  our  most  expressive  monuments  are  those, 
reared  by  ourselves,  the  purchase  of  our  own  lives,  the  work  of 
our  own  hands. 

The  most  faithful  monument  to  the  painter,  is  the  almost 
breathing  form  with  which  he  himself  has  clothed  the  canvas  ; 
to  the  sculptor,  the  beautiful  being  his  own  skilful  fingers  en- 
ticed from  the  shapeless  block  of  marble  ;  to  the  poet,  his  own 
lines,  the  gems  of  poetry  which  make  his  name  and  fame  im- 
mortal. The  noblest  monument  to  Washington  is  that  by  which 
he  wins  from  a  whole  nation  the  endearing  title,  "  The  Father 
of  his  Country."  Although  some  chiselled  stone  marks  a 
sacred  spot  in  our  own  beautiful  Auburn,  yet  the  true  memo- 
rials which  bear  a  perpetual  fragrance  to  the  name  of  Amos 
Lawrence  are  found  in  the  city  of  the  living,  amid  the  busy 
streets,  in  all  the  homes  he  blessed,  in  all  the  hearts  he  glad- 
dened. 

Whoever  has  passed  down  from  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  into 
the  vault  below,  and  stood  by  the  dust  of  those  whose  names 
form  a  bright  galaxy  on  the  pages  of  English  history,  will  well 
remember  the  unpretending  slab  that  marks  the  resting-place 
of  one  who  will  never  be  forgotten  as  long  as  those  foundation 
stones  endure.  In  the  adjoining  wall  is  a  marble  slab  with  this 
inscription:  "Beneath  lies  Sir  Christopher  Wren,  the  builder 
of  this  Cathedral  and  city,  who  lived  for  more  than  ninety 
years,  not  to  himself,  but  to  the  public  good,"  and  closing  with 
these  words  :  "  Lector,  si  monumentum  requiris  ?  Circumspice" 
(Reader,  seekest  thou  his  monument  ?  Look  around.)  This 
vast  cathedral,  with  all  its  magnificent  appointments,  these  lofty 
church  towers,  these  public  works,  are  all  the  monuments  of  his 
mighty  mind  and  genius. 

Here,  then,  are  the  most  truthful  monuments  to  him  of  whom 
we  speak.  These  happy  homes,  these  reunited  companions, 
these  joyful  parents  and  children,  these  blessing,  lhi;p<!  kindly 
deeds,  scattered  in  cities  and  towns,  over  many  a  mountain  and 


LIFE   OF   JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

down  through  many  a  vale,  along  many  a  river's  bank,  and  in 
many  a  forest  shade.  These  are  the  memorials  which  bear 
witness  to  the  character  of  John  Hawkins,  and  the  genius  of 

his  labors. 

Then,  kind  friends,  in  that  distant  valley,  amid  the  i 
oaks  whose  summer  shade  he  so  lately  enjoyed,  and  by  the 
side  of  that  spot  where  loving  hands  have  laid  him,  around 
which  even  at  this  hour  the  autumn  winds  have  been  twining 
their  chaplets  of  withered  leaves,  let  there  be  placed  the  ap- 
propriate inscription,  — 

"  Lector  si  monumentum  requiris  ?     Circumspice." 

From  the  many  tributes  to  the  memory  of  Mr. 
Hawkins,  received  by  his  family,  we  can  only  select 
the  following,  from  his  friend  and  co-laborer,  Wm.  H. 
Burleigh,  Esq.,  of  New  York :  - 

Shall  we  not  drop  a  tributary  tear, 
O  Champion  of  the  Fallen  !  on  thy  bier  1 
Not  for  thy  sake,  for  thou  hast  found  thy  rest 
Among  the  many  mansions  of  the  blessed, 
Where  pours  no  fiery,  desolating  flood, 
Swollen  with  tears,  incarnadined  with  blood  ; 
Nor  ribald  song,  nor  drunkard's  jest  profane, 
Nor  horrid  oath,  shall  vex  thine  ear  again  ! 

Oh,  who  thy  perfect  blassedness  can  tell, 
As  lauds  and  hallelujahs  round  thee  swell, 
While  angel  hands  sweep  over  quivering  wires, 
To  wake  the  music  of  a  thousand  lyres, 
And  angel  voices,  tuned  in  sweet  accord, 
Welcome  thee  home,  thrice  blessed  of  the  Lord  ! 
Nay,  not  for  thee,  tlion  habitant  of  heaven  ! 
But  for  the  wine-enthralled  our  tears  are  given. 

Thy  pleading  voice  can  touch  their  hearts  no  more, 

Thy  ministry  of  love  for  them  is  o'er. 

'Who,  when  the  goblet  tempts,  shall  woo  them  thence 

Witli  thy  licart-bn-athi'd,  persuasive  rl 


432  LIFE   OF  JOHN   H.   W.    HAWKINS. 

Thou,  who  didst  once  his  sore  temptation  know, 
Couldst  but  compassionate  the  drunkard's  woe ; 
Freed  from  the  bondage  of  the  cup  accurst, 
Thou  strengthenedst  others  from  that  thrall  to  burst. 
And  though  they  stood  upon  the  dark  gulf's  edge, 
Saved  them  from  ruin,  through  our  glorious  pledge  ! 

Thou  art  not  dead  !  for  still  thy  name  shall  be 
Heard  in  the  songs  of  those  thou  hast  made  free ; 
The  wife,  whose  husband  thou  didst  toil  to  save, 
Not  vainly,  from  the  drunkard's  yawning  grave, 
Shall  teach  her  little  ones  in  coming  days, 
To  tell  thy  story  and  to  lisp  thy  praise ; 
The  child,  redeemed  from  all  the  shames  that  fill 
A  rum-cursed  house,  from  woes  that  blight  and  kill, 
Lisping  thy  name,  shall  link  it  morn  and  even, 
With  the  sweet  prayers  that  tremble  up  to  heaven. 

The  ransomed  drunkard,  once  a  hopeless  slave, 
Snatched  from  a  vicious  life,  an  early  grave, 
Once  more  to  friends,  wife,  children,  home  restored, 
And  taught  the  way  that  leadeth  to  the  Lord,  — 
Shall  keep  thy  memory  treasured  in  his  heart 
Amid  its  holiest  things,  till  life  depart ; 
And  bless  thy  name,  while  lip,  and  eye,  and  breast, 
The  strong  emotions  of  his  soul  attest ! 

That  lovely  name  shall  be  a  spell  of  power, 
To  guard  the  feeble  in  temptation's  hour, 
And  make  them  strong  the  tempter  to  repel, 
Who  binds  his  victims  with  the  chains  of  hell  ; 
To  rouse  the  sad  inebriate  left  to  grope 
In  midnight  darkness,  unrelieved  by  hope, 
And  bid  him,  with  one  last,  strong  effort,  burst 
The  bonds  that  bind  him  to  the  fiend  accurst  — 
For  who  that  hears  how  Hawkins  was  made  free, 
Can  henceforth  say,  "  There  is  no  hope  for  me." 

And  when  the  triumph  comes  —  as  come  it  will, 
When  baffled,  flies  the  Demon  of  the  still, 
And  heaven-born  Temperance  pours  o'er  every  land, 
Her  richest  blessings  with  a  liberal  hand  ; 


LIFE    OF   JOHN   H.    W.    HAWKINS.  433 

Thy  prayers  and  tears  and  toils  to  haste  the  day 
Where  all  may  join  in  her  benignant  sway, 
Remembered  still,  shall  oft  recounted  be, 
And  glad  thanksgivings  shall  be  poured  for  thee. 

Farewell !  in  hope  we  leave  thy  hallowed  dust, 
To  wait  the  resurrection  of  the  just ! 
Oh,  be  thy  faith  and  zeal  and  courage  ours, 
While  called  to  battle  with  unholy  powers, 
And  may  our  lives  like  thine  be  freely  given 
To  bless  the  earth,  till  they  exhale  to  heaven  ! 


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